Fairy Tail's Mages of Sin
by CrimsonEmperor15
Summary: An AU version of Fairy Tail. For many decades now Fiore and the continent have seen prosperity. But nothing lasts forever. Darkness always finds a way to return. One that wishes to subjugate humanity. It is up to a young guild of misfits and sinners to prevent that evil from winning. The guild of 7 Sinners will be at the forefront of said onslaught!
1. Chapter I: The Last Member

**Prologue**

The Kingdom of Fiore was at peace. The time where dragons ruled the land, sea and sky, where they could kills human by the dozen on a whim, was but a forgotten era were guilds fought each other constantly for land, power and influence was over. Now the magic world prospered under the guidance of the Magic Council. But nothing lasts forever, unfortunately. Darkness can be stop but never contained or defeated. The continent of Isghar will experience a threat unlike anything it has seen before. From both small, mindless evil to those that wish to subjugate humanity.

But not everything is lost. Guilds have risen up to protect the peace and the magic world. One of them is a young, small guild of misfits and sinners would be at the forefront of that invasion. Hopefully its powerful guild master, whose strength is said to rival even that of the Wizard Saints, its reckless Dragon Slayer, a man whose greed knows no limits, a pair of troubled siblings, a mage with a need to learn and a girl that loves to be the center of attention, these mages will stand at the forefront against the onslaught that is to come!

 **Chapter I** : _Last Member_

* * *

"I wanted to avoid combat, you know. But you won't listen any other way," the twenty five year old young man said as he lowered his weapon. "Seems I need to bring you down a notch, slayer."p

What the hell was happening? Was it really happening? Was he on his knees? Why was he struggling so much to hurt his opponent? How could he be so outclassed?

All those questions bombarded the mind of Zane Darkfang, the Dark Flame Dragon Slayer. It was not the first time he fought a much stronger opponent, but this was so much different. He was too outclassed. "Damn it," Zane seethed with anger.

"Where did the confidence from a minute ago go?" the man asked. "I even dropped my magic-cancelling axe to give you some leverage. Since you were so angry that I was cancelling that Dragon Slaying Magic you seem so proud of."

"Screw you! I don't need you to take pity on me. I can kick your butt even if you are using that damn axe. Pick it up and let me show you what I am made of."

"Now there is that unshakable pride Dragon Slayers seem to have. But pride is meaningless when it's backed by just words and no action," he picked the darksteel axe up. It was massive, it was longer than Zane's entire body length. "Is that all you have? Or maybe you realized you are out of your league?"

"Like hell I did!" Zane stood up, wasting not a second in doing so, "don't you talk about my pride. What can you know about pride? I've one of the few people lucky to have not just seen a dragon but be raised by one. You think you can trample all over that? You think you can humiliate me?" Zane jumped as he ignited his right fist, "eat this!"

The man just smiled. He used his long axe to block the attack, the punch struck the axe's shaft instead. But Zane's body began to turn into fire and then it vanished. "A fire dummy?"

"Gotcha!" the slayer came out from above him, diving down with a kick ready, his foot wrapped in pitch black flames.

But Zane's foe seemed unfazed by his action. He quickly turned around to block the attack, but he used the iron bracer on his right arm. "Hmph, I guess it is all you have," he said before swinging his massive axe, striking the Dragon Slayer on his right shoulder. Breaking it.

Zame hissed from the pain, his right arm was hanging loose. As fierce as the slayer saw himself, and as destructive as his magic was, his body was nothing much to brag about. It was the body of a not fully developed sixteen year old teen. "Damn it. Who the hell cares. Just one arm," not a complete developed mind either.

"You are confident, kid. I will give you that. But sometimes confidence does not translate into strength. Just admit you bit more than you could chew, and let me talk to you. That's all I wanted before you pounce at me."

"Like hell will I ever give up. I would rather die standing than admit defeat."

The man sighed, "I really hate fighting those that don't value their lives. But that is the exact reason why I am standing before you, Dragon Slayer."

Zane inhaled a lot of oxygen, his stomach inflating, "Dark Flame Dragon's Roar!" he fired a wide and intense fiery blast of black fire, burning everything it touched along its path.

But his foe took the attack head on, never trying to dodge, block or cancel. He had a few scratches here and there, but nothing serious. The big change were the sudden tribal marks that covered his shirtless, lean body.

"Is he mocking me?" Zane asked himself. "Are you mocking me?!" he asked him. The slayer ignited his left fist and charged head on. When he got close he jumped and threw his flaming fist. But he wasn't there anymore. He vanished? No, he'd just move at an incredible speed. "Impossible."

"Thanks for the boost," he said before punching Zane right on the stomach. The force of the punch was so overwhelming it reverberated throughout his small body.

Caught off guard the slayer failed to see the strike coming. In an instant the air abandoned his lungs. He dropped to the floor like a sack of flour, not able to move. That one punch had cause him more damage than all the previous attacks combined. "Who… the hell are you?"

"My name is Salem Shado," he answered.

Zane was quiet for a few seconds, then he laughed like a madman, "Are you freaking kidding me? You are _the_ Salem Shado?"

Salem raised an eyebrow failing to see the reason to laugh, "You've heard of me?"

"Of course. Half of the continent knows who you are," Zane said. "Your power is said to match that of even the Wizard Saints. I never thought I would end up fighting a monster like you." It was clear as day to him why he had lost with such humiliating ease.

"Are you done? Can you accept the fact that you can't win?"

Instead of answering Zane tried to stand up, all while keeping a smug smile. The injuries to his body were severe, however, instead he could only stay on his knees.

"Are your injuries that funny?" Salem asked.

"Nope. I'm just happy," Zane replied. "Because I found someone I couldn't defeat. Someone too strong even for me. Someone that can finally kill me and end my misery."

"Now that's the stupidest thing to come out of your mouth, slayer," Salem said. "I don't enjoy fighting those that are weaker than me, what makes you think killing them would be any different? What about your family?"

Zane chuckled, "My family was taken from me. Killed by a dragon."

That took the powerful mage aback, "A dragon? The last dragon was killed more than a century ago. You look like you barely stopped wearing diapers."

Zane didn't reply, he only looked at his foe.

"I see. Tell me your real age."

"A few months ago I reached my one hundred and forty second birthday," Salem was about to ask for more information before the slayer interrupted him, "If you need to know I have a lacrima inside that cursed me with immortality. I cannot age. Done to me by a greedy bastard that used me as a tool. A weapon to kill those that questioned him."

Salem dropped his massive axe, cracking the floor. He kneeled in front of Zane, "How many have you killed?"

"Hell if I remember. Too many."

"Do you regret it?"

"I don't have any problem with killing. I killed many Alvarez soldiers during the war. It is the kills I was forced to make that haunt me. Their faces are imprinted in my mind. It's a sin I have carried with me for over a century."

"Running away from your sins doesn't help anyone. It only makes you a coward."

"Oh yeah? Tell me, Mr. Wise and Deep, what do you know about that?" Zane asked.

"I know a lot of people died because of me," Salem said. "People I could have easily saved, but I chose to ignore their plights."

"Oh, well that sucks," Zane said.

"It does. I can't make up for my past actions, but I can still work on the now. I promised myself never to ignore a plea of help," Salem said as he kept his eyes on Zane, "and right now I see someone that needs it."

"The hell are you talking about? Do you see me crying for a knight in shining armor to come and rescue me?" good thing his broken body didn't affect his crude answers.

"I see someone trying to run away from his sins," Salem said. "Too blinded by his pride to ask for help."

"Just tell me what you want from me!"

"Rumors of a mage with black fire that eliminated the dark guild Dragon's Claw single handed travel fast," Salem replied. "That info helped me find you. Now that I have I want you to join me and my guild."

"What? Why would you want someone like me to join your guild?"

"Because you are a perfect fit. It's a group of misfits. Everybody there has their baggage, and they are just the same screw ups as you and me. I don't know what it feels to be immortal, but I know loneliness. Let me give you a place where you can belong. And where you might have the chance to start all over."

Zane felt speechless. He had no idea what to think after that offering. He had not belonged anywhere since his dragon left him, almost a hundred and thirty years ago. And only recently did a bit of loneliness left him. It was a hard decision, as trust was a word Zane had forgotten about.

* * *

"Zane-kun? Zane-kun? Are you asleep?" Atticus the Exceed asked.

"Wha—? Sorry, Atticus, I got distracted," the slayer said.

"What happened? You were telling me the story of when you joined the guild," Atticus asked again.

"Didn't mean to drift off," Zane said. "I'm still wondering how I ended up joining the Seven Deadly Sins guild."

"Keep telling me about how Mr. Salem kicked your butt," not uncommon for the blonde Exceed to remind his friend of his less than stellar moments.

"Yes, Atticus," he rolled his eyes. "You didn't have to put it that way, y'know."

"I have to repeat it to believe it. I was not there, and I have never seen you lose before."

"And you will never see it happen. Because like hell it will happen again," Zane said with all the confidence in the world.

* * *

Under the shade of a tree Zane made a makeshift arm cast for his broken arm. He was a pro doing it. From battle experience and teaching from his parents.

"Sorry about the arm," Salem said.

"Nah, no need for that. Injuries are a part of fighting strong opponents," Zane said as he finished the cast around his arm. "It would have been a piece of cake for you to cause me more serious injuries, but you held back. A lot. You are a true monster. Unlike anything I've ever fought before."

"I told you I only wanted to talk to you. I can do a lot of things that are beyond your power, Pride."

"Pride?"

"That's your sin. The Sin of Pride. And your nickname. If you choose to."

"Yeah, that's fine. So, should I call you Master?" Zane asked.

"You don't have to call me like that, Zane. Call me Salem," he replied.

* * *

 _"Nii-san. Nii-san, can I go fishing with you?" ten year old Zane asked._

 _"Are you sure you are up to the task?" his older brother said._

 _"Yes, Nii-san. I can do this. But I just want to spend time with you."_

 _"Okay. You don't have to call me like that, Zane. Just call me by my name."_

* * *

For a second, Zane had been caught up in a memory from the distant past, "I will, Nii-san."

"You okay?" Salem just stared at his newest member.

"Uh… Yeah. So, what do you want me to do in your guild?"

"How to explain? A lot of people died because of me, that's my sin. There is nothing I can do about that. Neither can you about your sins. But I promised that if I could help anyone that needed it then I would do so. What you should do is help those that cannot help themselves, just like you refused because of your pride. And since you suffered at the hands of some guy that used you, preventing that from happening to others is for the best.

"Pride, just know that we don't do this to feel better about ourselves, or because the dead will forgive us. The past cannot be changed. But maybe, if we can prevent others from going through the same experience then one day we can forgive ourselves for what we did."

The Dragon Slayer gulped. It sounded like a hard, if not insurmountable, task. One that would never end, even for an immortal like him. But the slayer was never one to shy away from any task. He would confront it just like any other obstacle.

"If I'm Pride, then what's your sin, or crime, or whatever?"

"I said you can call me Salem, but you can also call me Wrath."

* * *

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	2. Chapter II: Sin of Pride

Sorry for the long wait. I've been busy with work, college, and being sick. And having to share writing time with my main Fairy Tail fanfic—that will always be a priority. Maybe a wait too long for a short chapter. Hope it is worth it.

 **Chapter II** : _Sin of Pride_

It has been a month since the Seven Deadly Sins guild got their last member. And it had been chaotic to say the least. Who would have thought adding an immortal, mentally immature, volatile Fire Dragon Slayer to a guild full of misfits and screw ups could be a recipe for chaos?

Not everyone was fond or tolerable of Zane's behavior. He was too reckless, to loud, and his constant boasting about his successful one-man missions was getting annoying. Pride, indeed. Everyone of the Sins, except for the guild master, had a bone to pick with him.

It went both ways. During the time he had been a member he was distant toward others. It made them wonder why he had bother to join in the first place. The only member he spent time with was Salem. Zane had grown attached to him. In ways that had caught the other members off guard.

Three of the Sins were in the guild hall, the sins of Greed, Sloth, and Envy.

"Peace and quiet. That annoying Dragon Slayer is too loud, somebody should sow his mouth shut," said the man with the slicked back, jet black hair, and copper skin, Exoru of the Sin of Greed. And he made sure to look the part. As the man had an expensive taste in clothing, and wore rings with gems of each color of the rainbow. Of all the Sins, he was the one with the biggest mouth, always speaking his mind, and finding faults with everyone. And Zane has been his target since day one. "That brat has a mouth too big for his small, dim brain. It gives me a blasted headache just hearing him."

The first of the Sins to join Salem, making him the second in command, sort to speak. A senior to all of the other members, though he care nothing for that or them. And the oldest member at 42, well, if Zane's chronological age was to be ignored. And of all the Sins he is the farthest from redemption. There was no profit, no gain from redemption. Only being part of the guild because he knew he'll gain something. Power. Despite that he does take care of the guild's monetary needs, being in charged of the guild's finance. Who better but the living embodiment of greed for that.

"I hate how he took the spotlight!" the Sin of Envy said. Envy, Sora Taidama, was a pretty sixteen year old cat-girl. Short in stature, sakura-pink hair with two long ponytails, cat ears above her head, cute face, a tiny fang, and flat chested. And one who hated not being the center of attention. Zane had taken it from her. Before him she was the newest one, and the youngest. "Salem used to give me all the attention, but now he's spending all of the time with _him_. And now that that stupid Pride isn't here, neither is Salem."

"Sora, would you…be…quiet?" Nama Taidama, the Sin of Sloth, complained. Sora's older brother, Nama was a quite, composed guy. Preferring to expend as little energy as possible. Usually found sleeping for most of the day. Just like Sora's a human/feline hybrid, so was Nama. Except the brown hair, 18 year old was a human/demon hybrid. As his pointy ears and golden, curved horns give it away.

Both Taidama siblings were victims of experimentation done to them by dark mages, who refused to accept Zeref's death.

"But Onii-chan, I'm just saying!" Sora complained.

"You are too…loud," Nama yawned. His love for his sister was unquestionable, but he hated having his precious sleep interrupted. "Just… shut up about… him." Of all the Sins, Sloth hated Zane the least, hating took precious energy that was better used for sleeping.

Exoru rolled his eyes, he would criticize Zane left and right, but that didn't mean he liked hearing others complain.

Everybody went silent when they heard the guild master walking from downstairs. Every Sin but Exoru preferred to avoid talking about Pride in Wrath's presence.

"Hey, has anyone seen Pride?" Salem asked.

"Why? You want that brat to even the building by destroying the other wall, too?" Exoru replied.

The previous day Zane broke one of the guild's wall after a fight. He tried to fight Salem after shouting "fight me" only to be knocked away, right through a wall. The fight lasted barely a second.

"That was an accident," Salem said.

Exoru scoffed, "An accident? You punched him through a damned wall. You realize every time the guild needs repairs _I_ have to deal with it? That's my precious time being wasted because of some stupid, uncontrollable boy, and a master that refuses to keep him on a leash."

"I'm no one's master, Greed. Remember that."

"Yeah, yeah. But I'm getting tired of having to pick up after him. Like some babysitter. The guild has been damaged more times in this past month than in the previous year put together. We are starting to sounds like those Fairy Tail losers."

"I know Greed but—"

"The only bright side, if you can call it that, is that the brat makes up for the damage with the money he brings from his suicidal missions. I guess even a brat can have a use." Exoru grabbed his fancy cane and stood up, walking away.

"You keep insulting him, but I am sure in the end you'll end up liking him the most," Salem said.

He turned, bowing to Salem, "your prowess in foresight is truly hilarious, Salem. May you one day teach such an ability to me." He walked away.

Sora jumped onto Salem's lap. "Yay! Now I can spend some time with you." It was her opportunity, not only because the Dragon Slayer was absent, but because Lust, Salem's girlfriend, was also gone. "Can you pet me?"

"Sure," Salem humored her. "How have you been, Envy?"

She smiled as her master's hand caressed her silky hair, "I'm good, now that I can spend some time with you."

"I'm sorry if I've been neglecting you, Envy. Had my hands full."

"I don't care. The important thing is that you are here with me."

"Sorry, Envy, but I can't stay. I am looking for Pride."

The young girl jumped out of his lap. "Why?! You've been spending so much time with dragon boy, did you forget about me?" she was outraged.

"I have dedicated time to each and everyone of you equally, Envy," the Sin of Wrath answered her. "So we can get to know each other, and trust each other. But he's a special case."

"Special? More than me?" Sora pouted.

"Not what I mean. He's a handful, more so than any of you," he said. "Pride is reckless, and does things that endanger his life. Of the six of you he's the only one that actually fought me."

"... Mission," Nama said through a deep yawn. "Pride is doing a mission."

"A mission?" Using the power of hindsight he should have thought about that. The guild master walked up to a cabinet filled with papers about missions. All of them had to fill one out before going on one.

It was easy to look for Zane's as he always took the most challenging missions. Salem sighed. "Taking on an entire dark guild? Sounds about right. I'll be back. I need to make sure Pride comes back in one piece."

Sora pouted as her master left the guild. She was angry. She needed a distraction. "Onii-chan let's go on a mission together."

"Don't wanna," Nama yawned. He only wanted to sleep.

"Come on. Get off your lazy butt for once and act like the earl you were meant to be," she said. "Or I'll go all by myself."

Nama sighed in defeat. He had no other choice. Last time he was lazy his sister was placed in mortal danger. Both of them. A terrible situation that cost them a normal life. "Alright. An easy mission."

"Yay!" the young loli jumped around. She searched for a fun mission to do. "I think this mission could be fun. Let's go, Onii-chan."

* * *

The sounds of a heated battle echoed throughout a ghost town. The abandoned town, with its run-down buildings, closed mines, and neglected roads, was the HQ location for of one of Crooked Moon's several branches. In a matter of years it had become one of Fiore's largest dark guild.

"Dark Flame Dragon's Meteor Fist!" Zane punched a member of the dark guild with his flaming fist, knocking him unconscious.

"What is it with this brat that he won't stay down?!" the captain said. "There is twenty of us and one of him." There _were_ twenty, already a few of them had been beaten.

"Numbers don't win battles, idiot," Zane said. His breathing was fast, while his face was covered in wounds, dirt and sweat. "You guys are boring. Dark Flame Dragon's Wing Attack!" The slayer sent two other foes slamming into trees with a whirlwind of fire.

"You little brat." One of the youngest dark guild member jumped from behind him with a dagger in hand. The same hand had the guild's mark on its back, a crescent moon with a laughing smile on it. "Your little game is over," said the young man as he licked the dagger. Then he dashed forward, ready to pierce the neck of the slayer.

Just as the dagger was inches away from the slayer's neck it was blocked by a massive battle axe; the dagger bounced off of his hand. The guy's hand vibrated due to the impact. "The hell?"

"Can't let you do that," Salem said as he rested the heavy ax on his shoulder.

"Who the hell is this guy?" the dark guild member asked.

"N-Nii-san?" Zane gulped, his fierce and confident demeanor turned nervous, as if he had been caught doing something wrong.

"Salem-san!" Atticus, on the other hand, looked more relieved.

"Pride, this mission is of S-class difficulty. You need my permission to do it," the Sin of Wrath said, "and you need to do them in pairs." Six Sins, three pairs. Salem was the only one strong enough to do them single-handed.

"I know, but, Greed didn't care when I gave him the form," Zane said.

 _I should have known._ "That's no excuse. The decent thing for you to do is come to me before taking this kind of mission."

"I'm sorry, Nii-san."

"I told you Zane-kun," Atticus said. "I'm sorry for him, Salem-san."

"What the hell? These two must be very confident to ignore us." The same dark guild member from prior picked up the dagger and dashed at Salem.

"Did that talking cat say Salem?" the captain asked himself. He only knew of one mage called like that. "Wait, you idiot! He's too strong for you." The stout, middle-aged man tried to warn his younger subordinate.

"I'm gonna kill you. Then I'm gonna slice the brat's neck open—"

The young man found himself smashed into the ground by a punch from Salem. The impact created a wide crater.

"You don't threaten to harm any of my Sins in front of me." With a single punch the Sin of Wrath knocked the dark guild member out.

"Damn, no mercy," the Dragon Slayer whispered.

"That imbecile. He should have listened to me," the captain swallowed hard as he could sense Salem's ridiculous power, "so, you are the guild master of this brat? That independent guild that has been the talk of every dark guild for months."

"So you've heard of us. I assume you've heard of me, too, right?" Salem asked.

"Yeah. Most dark guilds alliance have been warned about you, specifically," the captain answered. "That includes our guild master."

"Oi, boss. If this is that Salem guy, isn't there a large bounty for his head?" one member asked him.

"You want to try and aim for that reward, go ahead. But you already saw what he can do."

The guild member said nothing more.

 _Damn it, that Dragon Slayer was already troublesome enough, but with this monster there is just no way_. The captain had to make a rather embarrassing decision. "We don't want any more problems with your guild. As I said, our master said not to mess with you, if it was avoidable. Can we avoid any more problems?"

"Stay away from my guild," Salem said. There was a clear "or else" in there too. "Let's go, Pride."

"What? But the mission!" Zane argued.

"The mission is over, Pride. We are going back to the guild."

* * *

Zane and Atticus walked behind their guild master. The slayer had been silent the entire trip back to the guild. He was angry at Salem for interrupting his mission. His fight. He murmured under his breath, kicked rocks and sticks. He was acting like a spoiled child not a proud Dragon Slayer.

The patient Salem took a deep breath before breaking the silence. "Pride, do you want to spar with me?"

That startled the Dragon Slayer. "Say again?"

"I assume you are still itching for a fight after interrupting your mission," Salem said. "Do you want to spar with me to pass the time?"

Honey for Zane's ears. "Damn right I do." Without the slightest hesitation Zane dashed at his guild master to throw a flaming fist at him.

 _You always charge forward. Never hesitating. No matter how strong your opponent. Why? To prove you are not afraid? Or…?_

Salem blocked the attack with his forearm. He struck Zane on the back with the side of his right knuckle. His crazy physical strength slammed Pride into the ground. "Damn, maybe I should take it easier on you."

The ground beneath Salem started to shake. "Huh?" He looked down and saw as the ground began to bubble. Then a large eruption of black fire sent the Dragon Slayer up into the sky. "Smart use of your Roar."

"You take it easy on me and you'll get burn." Zane fired a stream of dark flames from his hands that spiraled together as they headed towards Salem. "Dark Flame Dragon's Spiraling Ember!"

Salem swung his axe just as the attack got close enough, the blades sliced the attack, cancelling it. But just as the attack disappeared and cleared his view Salem saw a Zane falling down straight at him, hands together and cloaked in flames. Zane slammed them on his head.

The spectating Exceed gasped. "He hit Salem-san."

The slayer had a proud grin on face. He had finally hit him. "You might be able to cancel my magic but that axe is heavy enough to slow you down even with your strength. That one second is all I needed."

"Good thinking. Most people are too worried about their magic being nullified to figure that out," Wrath said.

As happy as he was to finally hit his powerful master, Zane knew that attack probably tickled him. "Sparring or not, I'll not let you take it easy on me. Dark Flame Dra—"

Salem's speed overwhelmed the Dragon Slayer, in a blink he was standing a few paces in front of him, axe ready to slice him. "If that's what you want," he said before swinging the axe at his Sin.

Zane grabbed the handle of the weapon, but the force behind it was still great enough that it dug his feet into the ground. A drop of nervous sweat separated the axe's blade from the tip of his small nose.

From a tree branch a horrified Exceed could do nothing but look on. He sighed in relief as his friend managed to stop the axe from slicing him in half. "Zane-kun, why can't you just enjoy the sparring. I know you'll get yourself hurt, even when Salem-san doesn't want that to happen."

While Atticus was worried for Zane's safety, Zane was more worried about the humiliation. _Ridiculous! He's not even trying and yet I am barely able to stop the axe._ Zane couldn't believe how heavy the axe felt. If Salem were to let go of it it would probably crush him under its own weight.

Zane was used to overcoming his lack of physical strength by using his agility, but that wouldn't work against someone much faster than him. That only served to infuriate him more.

"What's wrong? A little too hot for you?"

 _I am going to make you eat those words._ What Zane did caught the mighty Salem off guard. He released the axe.

"Shit," Salem swore as he lost control of the axe. Without Zane holding on to it the weapon swung down. The battleaxe pierced the ground, making a large and deep crack. The blade was covered in blood, lots of it. He looked at Zane and saw the terrible wound the axe caused him. A deep wound right where the left arm was connected to the shoulder. The Sin of Pride was bleeding rapidly. His shirt was turning red. "Pride, I'm—"

"Sword Horn!" Zane headbutted Salem, hitting him with a blazing heabutt on the nose. It actually knocked him on his rear.

While Salem was horrified to see the terrible wound he caused Zane, the Dragon Slayer was wearing a smug smirk. "Told ya. If you take it easy on me you'll get… burn…" Due to the fast blood loss Zane fainted.

"Zane!" The Exceed quickly flew from the tree branch to his friend's side. "Zane. Zane! What did you do? You're supposed to be his guild master!" The accusing eyes of the blonde cat pierced right through Salem's heart. "He's bleeding a lot."

That only served to increase the guilt more. Salem stood up, wiped the blood coming down from his nose, without saying anything he grabbed the bleeding Sin of Pride. He ran back into the guild, leaving the Exceed behind.

 _I think I figured it out._ Salem thought.

* * *

"Here, neko neko. Here, neko neko," Sora shouted, her voice echoing as it bounced from the many trees that made up the deep woods. "Come here, neko neko."

"Sora, you are being too loud." Nama was resting under the shade of a tree, his back leaning comfortably on the smooth surface of the trunk.

"I'm calling for the cat, Onii-chan," she said. "You know, the mission? Looking for the pet of that old lady? Which you are supposed to be helping me with."

Nama rubbed his sleepy eyes, "Couldn't we have done an easier mission?"

Easier than looking for a cat? That was lazy even for his standards.

"You are not going to get up your butt to help me?"

"I'll be with you in a few minutes."

"Stupid, lazy brother!" She stuck her tongue out, then started to walk away.

Nama was falling asleep. "I'll be with you in a few—" his sister's screams woke him up. "Sora?" When his sister was in danger he stopped being lazy. He immediately ran after her.

He found her laying on the floor, trapped under some sort of net. "Sora!"

"Wait Onii-chan."

But she wasn't able to warn him in time. When he touched the net he was electrocuted. The shock tumbled him down.

"Are you okay?" she asked him.

"I should be the one asking that." Part of his body was numbed, but other than that he was well. "What happened? Who did this to you?"

"I've finally found you, my children."

That voice was something neither sibling would ever forget. It sent chills down both of their spines. "You?"

An old man come out from the shadows. He was old, past his fifties. His gray hair was untidy. His white, mage robes was old and tattered. "It's been a while, hasn't it, children?"

"What do you want with us?" Nama asked as he was standing up, ready to fight if necessary. However, as soon as he moved a muscle he found himself trapped in a net, too. He could feel his powers not answering to him.

"Come on, my boy. You think I would come unprepared when you possess that nifty Curse Power of yours?" the man said. "After all, I gave it to you. After studying the genius of Zeref."

"What do you want with us?!" Zora cried.

"Well, to get my children back, of course," the man answered matter-of-fact. "I've come to take you home."


	3. Chapter III: Search and Rescue

**Summary** : The Sins of Sloth and Envy had been kidnapped by a nightmare from their past. Their only hope is that Salem can rescue them. But even he might not be able to do so even with his great powers.

 **Chapter III** : _Search and Rescue_

How many years has it been since that fateful day? Nama couldn't remember. But how he wished to go back to those good old days. Days of luxury, days of peace. Days were he got everything handed to him on a silver platter. Without a care in the world. Well, maybe his annoying little sister. But he could live with that. Nobody said being groomed to become an earl was going to come without a single sacrifice.

Though he never cared about that. The only thing Nama cared about during his time as a young nobleman was living the easy life. And by god had it been easy. Maids that dressed him in the morning and night. Servants to clean after him. At least a dozen different cooks to cook whatever he wished.

His father, the earl, always ruined that for him. Getting him tutors to teach him politics. He was expected to work for the kingdom. His mother hired him magic tutors, because what kind of nobleman didn't know magic? But the fencing was the worst of them all. He truly hated—

"Wake up, my boy."

Nama was woken up by that terrible voice. When he opened his eyes he found himself trapped inside a glass tube. The type that is expected to be found in the type of horror movie involving inhumane experiments.

He also noticed he was wearing nothing but a white robe. "Where is my sister!?" he asked. "What do you want with us?"

"Onii-chan!"

Nama heard his sister calling for him. He wouldn't have to look far. To his right Sora was trapped too in a glass tube. Wearing a similar white robe. "Let her go. You want me."

Stein, the scientist that had kidnapped them, laughed. "Why would I do that? So that she can go and get that thug of a guild master you have? Don't be silly, my boy. As if I bright man such as myself would commit such a mistake."

He took out a piece of cloth and used it to clean his glasses, "but you are right, Nama, I do want you. Your sister is of no use to me. Her artificially implanted Beast Soul was more of an experiment than anything else. To get me prepared for a hybrid creation," he said. "But you, my boy. You are an Etherious/human hybrid. My greatest creation. Though incomplete. But once I finish it, I will show the world my true genius. They will be forced to acknowledge me as the greatest mind the world has seen. I will surpass the genius of Master Zeref."

* * *

Back at the Seven Deadly Sins Guild. Salem had taken Zane to the guild's infirmary after their short battle. The slayer was still unconscious, bandages wrapped across his chest. Salem had healed him. He knew basic first aid, to prepare in case of any situations such as the current one.

Atticus was worried for his friend, but he had stopped crying once Zane stopped bleeding.

"I'm sorry," Salem said. "I didn't mean to hurt him."

"I know, Salem-san. It was an accident," Atticus said. "I'm sorry for screaming at you. That was wrong. I should be screaming at this idiot."

"Tell me, this isn't the first time this happens, right?" Salem asked.

"I lost count of how many times it's happened before," the Exceed replied.

I was afraid of that. But I've figured why he fights like that. I need to do something about it.

"I've almost lost him because of his reckless actions before. But he won't stop."

"He will, little Exceed. I promise you I'll help you stop his suicidal way of fighting."

Atticus smiled at him. But he would hold the guild master to his word.

"Did I win?" the Dragon Slayer said as he regained consciousness. "I'm sure I did."

"Is that all you can think of? Winning or losing?" Salem gave him a disapproving look.

"What else should I think of?" Zane asked him sarcastically.

"Your life?" That made the slayer laugh. "Your friend? Don't you think what you did hurt him?"

"I did what I had to do in order to teach you a lesson. I don't forgive those that dare underestimate me. Even if that means risking everything away."

The Sin of Wrath released a heavy sigh. This was different from the others Sins. They all had their problems, but none of them reached the point of throwing their lives away without a second thought. That was the danger of such a sin. Pride above one's life. This was going to be an extremely hard task.

He wondered if the journal of his predecessors had any advice to offer him.

"Pride, I—" Just as he was about to lecture Zane some more Salem felt a sudden lost of connection with two of his members. "Sloth. Envy. I can't sense them anymore."

* * *

"Deadly Sin Magic? Never heard of it," Zane said. Due to his unusually long life, it is rare for him to hear of an unknown magic.

He was feeling much better despite the injury. The bandages were covered by his long-sleeves red shirt and the precious black cape that covered his shoulders.

"Thanks to it I am linked to you and all of the other Sins," Salem pointed at his black Sin of Wrath dragon tattoo on the left side of the chest. "When your tattoo glows is because another Sin is in danger."

"Oh, that's pretty nifty," Zane said.

Salem continued explaining. "Thanks to that magic I know where you all are, regardless of the distance. I know your physical and magical condition too."

For Zane it sounded a little bit like an invasion of his privacy. He was not sure what to think of it.

Salem looked like he read the slayer's mind. "Don't worry, I only use it when I feel you guys are in danger and if you require my assistance. I swore to all of you that I would protect you with my life, and this is my way of keeping that promise. But I will never violate the privacy of any member. I respect that."

"Alright. I trust you. That's just another thing I'll have to get used to."

"If you are linked to all the Sins, then why did you say you can't sense them anymore?" Atticus asked.

"I think they were captured. And whoever did it must be using some sort of magic-cancelling spell or item," the guild master said. "It severed the link between us."

The two Sins and the Exceed stopped in the middle of a forest. The same place Envy and Sloth were before being captured.

"This is as far as I can trace their presence before the link abruptly stopped," he said.

"Zane-kun can probably track them through scent. He has a good nose," Atticus mentioned.

"Precisely the reason why I brought him here. If anyone can help me find them is you, Pride. I need those Dragon Slayer senses."

"I'll help, but you do understand that the more time passes the fainter scents become, right?" Zane asked.

"I do. But that should not be a difficult task for you, right? Or is your nose not up for it?" Salem teased the Dragon Slayer knowing how proud he is regarding his sharp senses.

"Like hell! I'll track their scent. Find them, and kick the ass of whoever kidnapped them," the Sin of Pride said.

"Lead the way, Pride. I am counting on you."

* * *

Why did Nama always got all of the attention while she got none? Sora asked herself. Why? Why? Why?! It had always been like that.

He was the heir to their family's fortune, land and their noble titles. The first born. He had to be groomed, to be taught, to be given everything, all to prepare him for his eventual ascendance as the head of the family.

Meanwhile, the abandoned daughter, what about her? Eh, maybe she can be married off to another nobleman. Her parents had little time for her.

Sora grew to resent Nama. Resent all the attention and special treatment he got. Especially from their parents. She wanted that too. She craved, needed the attention he got. It was not fair. Till this day she has not forgiven him for that. Nor could she forgive herself from hating her only family.

That was her sin. Resentment grown from envy.

"Don't worry, Sora, I'll get us out of this. I promise," Nama said through the other test tube.

She looked at him, she gave him a small smile, but it lacked confidence. "What can you do, Onii-chan? You didn't do anything the first time. What's so different now? We are in the exact situation as three years ago. You still can't do anything. Even when you have powers."

"I… I…. Damn it!" Sloth punched the glass. She was right. Every painful word she had spoken was right. He was a failure of an older brother now just as then.

Three years ago Stein and a group of dark mages attacked their estate. They killed their parents, their servants, everyone. While all that happened Nama found himself unable to do anything. He didn't study magic, he didn't practice his sword skills. He had been useless. He couldn't do the one thing expected of an older brother; protect his younger sibling.

The result was their kidnapping. And Stein doing terrible experiments on both of them. It happened for several agonizing weeks.

That was his sin. Nama's lack of drive, his laziness, his sloth, had taken everything from him. And scarred him and his little sister's life forever.

"Now now, I don't want to hear any more nonsense about trying to escape," Stein said. "It won't be happening. Inside of these tubes your abilities are nullified. And your master is not going to be finding either one of you anything soon. I've cut your connection with him. You are all mine, my children. Let's get started then"

* * *

It had taken a couple of hours, but it seemed Zane had managed to track the scents of Nama and Sora. Once caught there was no letting it go.

The guild master followed close behind him. He had not said a word, wanting Zane to concentrate on tracking his two precious Sins. He was worried for them; it was rare for him to feel powerless but without the use of his Deadly Sin Magic he couldn't locate them. Salem would move heaven and earth to find them, without hesitation, but he had a more efficient method to do it. And less chaotic. Well, maybe not so much.

"We are near," Zane said.

"How much?" Salem asked. His worries vanishing in a second.

Zane pointed in front of them. The trees ended, revealing an open landscape. Inside of that area was an abandoned building, at least several decades old. But if Wrath and Pride expected Sloth and Envy to be inside of it they would be disappointed. Most of the walls of the building had crumbled, revealing nothing but an empty shell.

"Are you sure about that?" Salem said.

Zane felt insulted by such a question. "You doubt my nose?"

"No, I—"

"There a third person, too. I can smell them," Zane said, his insulted tone shifted into a serious one. "Probably the one that kidnapped them."

"Is that so?" The ground beneath the Sin of Wrath began to crack. Nobody messed with his guild members and went unpunished. "We need to find the entrance to his place even if I have to tear it apart."

"No need for that, Salem-san. I found it." Atticus landed on his feet after a quick area recon. "I found it. It is on the south side of the building. Metal doors that lead to somewhere underground."

The ran to the other side of the building. Zane looked at the door, studied it. And came to a rather humiliating conclusion. "Hm, this metallic door is going to take some time for me to melt," Zane said.

Salem had other ideas. "That won't be necessary, Pride."

"Why's that…?!"

With a single punch the guild master blew the metal doors away, as if they were made of paper. The doors have been bent inside and blown away from their hinges. They were sent all the way to the end of the tunnel before they made a loud thump as they bounced from the ground.

Both the slayer and the Exceed gulped in awe. So this is how Salem acted when he was showing others his sin. Zane could sense it, the anger boiling inside of him. It made him wonder just how powerful he was when he got really angry.

Zane ignited his right fist and punched his left palm. "Let's go save those two."

* * *

Doctor Stein was distracted gathering the necessary tools to begin with his experimentation on his two prisoners. When all of a sudden loud alarms sounded throughout his lab followed by bright flashes.

"What is this? Unwelcome guests?" He looked at a giant screen that showed him the two trespassers. The entire underground lab was covered in lacrima that recorded everything and transmitted it to the main screen.

"Salem!" Envy screamed his name with hope.

"That thug? I won't let him take you away from me again," Stein said.

"The Dragon Slayer's with him too?" So that's how he found us. Nama thought.

"Dragon Slayer?" the mad scientist looked at the screen, adjusting his glasses, "ah, I see now. Interesting… What's this? Black flames? Now this is something one does not see everyday. A Dragon Slayer with black fire, now that is a subject worth experimenting on."

"What are you talking about?" Nama asked.

"Yes. With the unique power of a Dragon Slayer I could create the ultimate demon. The ultimate weapon that will give me the glory and recognition I deserve!"

"He's crazy, Onii-chan."

"Don't worry, Sora. We both know that idiot Pride won't let himself be capture. Not with Salem at his side."

"Is that so, children?" Stein turned to face them, he gave them a sinister smile, it sent a cold shiver down their spines. "Do you really think I would be in this place without some sort of backup plan in case things went against my plans?" he pulled down a lever, activating a secret door. Several pairs of blood red eyes sparkled in the darkness, "No children, I do not make the same mistakes twice."

* * *

Both Sins and the Exceed walked forward in a cramped tunnel made of stone. The place was dusty and covered in cobwebs. The place had to be decades old.

They had been walking for a few minutes, but it seemed as if the tunnel was eternal. It was so deep little light entered it. It was almost pitch black. Fortunately it was nothing the slayer couldn't handle with his dragon eyes. He could guide Salem.

Nor was Salem worried, he had been in enough similar situations to shrug it off.

"Can you sense them here?" Zane asked his master.

"Even this close the link is still severed. Can you track them?" Salem asked back.

"Them and another person. Actually," the slayer sniffed the air detecting several strong scents. He got ready for the fight that was about to come. "Get ready, Salem-niisan, things are about to get exciting."

At the end tunnel they were met with two bright dots that seemed to be floating above the floor. The dots slowly started to get bigger and bigger. No, they started to get closer.

"Guess we have a greeting party," Zane said.

When it got closer there was just the right amount of light to show the silhouette of a beast.

"What is that?" the Exceed asked.

Zane focused his eyes, letting them absorb as much light as possible. He could see something, a mishmash of different beasts in a single form. The body of a horse covered in scales, with a feline's head and the wings of some giant bird.

"A chimera?"

The chimera roared, its powerful voice bouncing off the walls. It stung the slayer's ears. Once the chimera noticed the being standing in front of it in pain due to his roar it charged at it. It opened its mouth wide enough to fit the slayer's head, its rows of fangs would make quick work of that skull.

Salem rushed forward, grabbing Zane by the collar and pulling him back, maybe with a little too much force. But what mattered was that he was out of harm's way. But the chimera bit his arm instead. "Are you okay?"

"That's my line. I ain't the one that's about to lose an arm."

"Don't worry about me. Do me a favor, would you. Go and—"

Both Sins turn their attention to their left as the wall began to move sideways. It revealed another room. This one had light in it and it clearly showed a second chimera. Different from the one biting Salem. This one had a beak.

The second chimera had Zane in its sight, but before it could do anything Salem grabbed it by the throat, lifted it it and forced it on its hind legs, pushing the beast to the wall.

The screeched as it struggled to set itself free. But unlike the first chimera that had hooves, this one had paws with sharp claws. They wasted no time is trying to slash Salem to pieces to free itself.

"Do me a favor. Go and find Sloth and Envy, Pride. Rescue them while I deal with these things," Salem said.

"You sure?" Zane asked.

"I can handle myself well. I've been in tougher situations."

"Alright, don't get yourself killed, okay?"

"Not gonna happen as long as two of my Sins are in danger." Wrath gave Pride a confident smile before nodding him off.

Atticus grabbed Zane and flew him away at maximum speed. Leaving his master to fend for himself. It did not make him happy to leave him behind, not at all.

"Was it a good idea to leave Salem-san behind?"

"No. Now he'll have all the fun for himself!"

"You sure that's what should be in your mind?"

"Faster, Atticus. Their scents are getting closer," Zane said.

"Aye!" The Exceed increased his speed. He, just like Salem and Zane, wanted to rescue Nama and Sora. He cared for them, probably more than Zane cared for them. For now.

Just as the two of them were closer to the room holding the two Sins hostage, the ceiling above the entrance opened up and from it another beast dropped in front of them. Unlike the other chimeras this one stood on two legs, and it was massive, taller than Salem, and a bulk of muscles. With the head of some sort of swine.

"Is like a Vulcan and a Hodras had a baby. That thing's disgusting," the slayer said.

"It is blocking the entrance," Atticus said. "What should we do? Too big to flank it, not enough space."

Zane got a sly smile, Atticus knew what it meant, Zane got an idea, a reckless one. "We are going right through."

"W-What?!"

"Fly us back. Get some distance, then charge with all of the speed you can."

"Aye."

* * *

"What are those things?" Nama asked.

"Those things as you so crudely label them are my creations. Chimeras," Stein answered. "My precious guardians. I programmed them to defend me at any cost."

"They are monsters. How could you do something so horrible to those animals?" Sora cried.

"Monsters? Horrible? I improved them, my girl. I made them far better than they have ever been. This is an upgrade. This is evolution. My evolution. I have surpassed nature."

"You are crazy. You more of a monster than those things."

"Bah! What do you know, half-breed. You are nothing more than a lazy boy. I am a genius. And Earthland will see it soon," the mad scientist laughed like… a man scientist. "Vulcans are a great start. Their Take Over abilities are great to merge them with other animals. That's why I gave you that magic, Sora. A great first experiment, if I may say so myself. Next it'll be—"

Stein was interrupted halfway through his monologue of insanity by the sudden destruction of a wall due to the massive body of the chimera and the fiery kick that had sent it crashing right through it.

"Out of my way, you oversized monkey!" the Dragon Slayer shouted.

The debris created by the collapse struck the glass tubes that had been keeping Nama and Sora prisoners. Once free they could feel their powers coming back.

"You guys okay?" Zane asked the two Sins.

"Yeah. Though I wished you could have done this earlier, need to catch up on my beauty sleep," Nama said.

"Where is Salem? I thought he would be the one rescuing me," Sora pouted.

Zane looked annoyed. "I regret coming here for you two."

"How dare you ruin my precious lab like that, you stupid brat!" Stein had been hit by some of the debris but other than that he was uninjured, minus his pride. "I will capture you, Dragon Slayer, and experiment with you until I have used every fiber of your being."

The scientist was struck on the head by something hard, knocking him out cold.

"You are not going to do anything to Zane-kun," Atticus said, his iron hard tail returning back to its soft state.

"Well, unless you want to stay here and clean up the place, let's go back. Salem-niisan really wants to see you," Zane said.

"Yay!" Sora cheered.

"Think your cat can carry me? Tired of being trapped in a tube all day," Sloth asked as he yawned.

Before Zane and Atticus could reply to that question they heard a growl coming from behind them.

They turned to face the chimera Vulcan standing up. Its face swollen from the kick. It was not happy. It searched for the Dragon Slayer, once its eyes caught a hold of him it wished nothing more than to grab his small body and rip it in half like a piece of fruit. It growled loudly.

"You want some more? Bring it!" Zane launched a fire fist.

The chimera answered by throwing a fist that was as big as Zane's entire upper body. But it abruptly stopped halfway before colliding with Zane's fist.

Both the chimera and the Sin looked astounded.

"I don't want to owe you anything, slayer, so this is my way of calling us even." Nama's eyes were shining a white color as he used his power to stop the attack. His right hand pointed to the chimera, preventing it from moving any further.

Time Manipulation? So he does use Curses like a demon. Zane thought to himself. He had heard of Nama's Sloth Curse ability, but never seen it in person.

"Good idea. I don't want to owe a kid like you anything, either. Take Over: Leopard Soul!" Sora turned into a large, pink leopard. Her feline fur was as well mainted as her actual human hair. And she looked as graceful and full of herself as she normally does. True to her feline soul.

"Noble Feline Aura Sphere!" From her mouth Sora fired an energy sphere of pink and purple colors. The magic attack struck the chimera on the chest, pushing it to further back into the lab. The blast exploded, sending a whirlwind of fire at them.

"Oh-oh," was all Sora said. Not realizing firing a powerful blast in with potentially flammable items was not a good idea.

"Guess you two still owe me." The Dragon Slayer moved in front of them, then sucked the blazing inferno like a meal. He was feeling much better after a good fire. "Let's go back before you two do something stupid again. I ain't gonna be saving your asses for a third time."

* * *

"Salem!" Sora greeted her master by jumping into his arms. She was back into her human form.

"I am glad to see you and your brother are safe, Envy," Salem said as he hugged her back. The two chimeras that he'd fended off had been pummeled into the ground. Except for a few bite marks and scratches that did nothing more than tickle him the strongest of the Sins was fine. "Thank you, Pride."

"Don't like babysitting, but it was fun. Got to fight some vulcan chimera mixture," the slayer said. "But next time you'll be doing the rescuing while I stay behind being the hero."

"I just wanna go back to the guild," Nama said in between yawns, "too tired… want my bed."

Before the four Sins could go on their merry way they were stopped the laughter of a madman.

"You think you get to take my children away from me, Salem? Not this time!"

The guild master took a step forward. This time he would protect them. "I'm taking them back to the guild. Back to safety, and away from you. I would rather not harm someone that is too far from my league, but if you refuse to stay away from them I won't hesitate to break you into pieces."

Stein laughed again, his mad chuckled growing faster and louder. "You think you can threaten me? You are nothing more than a musclehead. Your brawn can't compete with my genius."

The scientist took out a lacrima from the inner pocket of his white coat. It was a black crystal. He placed it on his chest then it started to shine. His entire body was cloaked in a bright light. "I will show you just how far you are from my league." His voice began to grow deeper, more menacing.

Stein's body began to expand. It grow taller, more muscular. His clothing was torn to shreds. His skin grow harder, almost rock-like. Spikes covered his arms and back. Rows of horns popped from the top of his head. His teeth sharpened. He had turned himself into a giant monster, he towered over the already tall Sin of Wrath.

Salem looked up at the monstrous scientist with a confused look. "I thought you were going to use your brains to beat my brawn? That's the opposite."

"Silence! I don't expect such a dimwitted fool like you to understand my thoughts," Stein said. "Out of my way so that I can take my children, and that slayer too." He lifted his large, thick arm and slammed it against Salem. The force of the impact sent Salem crashing through the stone walls.

"What? There's no way!" Nama and Sora were shocked to see a man that has never lifted a finger to defend himself actually pushing their guild master back so easily.

Stein lifted his giant clawed foot and stomped Salem over and over again. Each time he stomped the ground trembled from the sheer power he was exerting. "You will not get in my way again." He stopped attacking until he felt sure all of Salem's bones were now dust. "I will take them back now."

"He can't be stronger than Salem, he can't." Sora cried.

Nama was speechless and paralyzed. He had never imagined that Stein's magic was capable of giving him that kind of power. There was nothing more the human-demon hybrid wanted than get his sister out of that place, but could he do so against that kind of power?

Zane looked bored, and impatient. "Are you going to get serious or should I do it for you?"

Salem laughed as he stood back up, not a scratch in sight. The only thing Stein did was covered his bare chest with his tattoos. "Was it that obvious?"

"A little." Zane was the newest member, but he was the only one that has seen and felt Salem's power. Plus, he had far more combat experience than either Envy or Sloth, he knew when people were holding back.

Stein took a step back in fear, but in the small tunnel there was little room for him to move. "Impossible. How are you still standing after all that punishment?"

"I told you didn't I? You are too out form my league." With a speed only the fastest eyes could notice Salem punched Stein right on his stomach and into the ground. The force behind his punch was so overwhelming it shattered the floor beneath Stein.

He kept falling and falling, shattering the many tunnels that hid deeper underground. When the momentum from the strike finally was exhausted Stein had to had fallen at least ten floors deep.

"Let's go back to the guild."

* * *

"Thanks for coming to our rescue, Salem," Sloth said. Through to his sin, Sloth was taking the trip back to the guild on Salem's back. He just did not want to walk.

Sora, not allowing her older brother to have Salem all for himself, had begged him to carry her in his arms. Which he did.

"Why are you thanking me for? I swore I would protect you all when you joined. I was serious then as now," he replied.

"I wish I could have done something to protect her."

"Don't kill yourself over that. Sometimes we just need a little help. No matter how strong we get."

"One day I will get strong enough. For her."

Salem couldn't help but smile at Sloth's words. This is what he loved about his brothers and sisters, they all had a motive to get stronger, a reason to walk into the future. Well, almost all of them.

"Speaking of, where did Pride go?" Wrath asked.

"I don't know," Nama yawned again, he really missed his bed, "I heard him saying he would be back soon."

* * *

"Ha… ha… I've been dreaming of… creating the perfect demon… to be like Zeref. And right in front of me…" the horrible pain in Stein's stomach made in a burned to even speak. "...is one of them."

"So you like to kidnap kids and do experiments on them, huh? Turn them into tools?" The look in the eyes of the Sin of Pride was one of deep anger and a hatred that could burn through steel. "You know why you are still alive? Once those two were saved Salem's anger vanished. Salem-niisan is too nice. Zane's claws began to extend, "but I'm not."

Once the deed had been done Atticus flew Zane back to the others. "You sure that was the right thing to do?"

"That guy was crazy and obsessed. He would have kept coming after them," Zane answered. "He would have ruined their lives to the point where they would've never been able to go back to normal. I don't want anyone to go through the same hell I did."

Atticus never knew what exactly to think of when Zane acted like that. But he would always follow him no matter what. "At least they are safe and that's all that matters."

"Yeah. Hey look, we caught up to me."

Atticus landed Zane softly on the ground. Undid his Aera, and now rested on top of Zane's head.

"Where were you?" Salem asked them.

"Oh, just had to do some unfinished business. Don't worry about it," Zane casually replied.

Salem stared at him for a second, "Well, glad you are back to join us," but decided to take the answer and not push it, for now.

* * *

 **Well, this took me a lot longer than I wanted to, but my main Fairy Tail fanfic is a priority. Better late than never. Enjoy!**

 **If you like Fairy Tail and like Roleplaying, then join my Fairy Tail forum! Here at fanfiction. It is called Fairy Tail: the After Tale.** **forum/Fairy-Tail-Universe/204259/**


	4. Chapter IV: Seven Sins, Arc 1: Prelude

**Chapter IV** : _Seven Sins, Arc 1: Prelude_

"Pride, I need to talk to you," Salem said. He was sitting down, eating in the guid's main hall.

"What is it, Salem-niisan?" Zane sat down on the other side of the table his master was eating on.

It had been a couple of days since Sloth and Envy had been rescued from the clutches of the mad scientist. They had spent it recuperating, physically and mentally. Not just them but Pride too. His wound caused by his fight with Salem had opened during the rescue mission. He had used those two days to rest, with a lot of persuasion from Atticus and Salem.

Even convincing him to rest was a chore.

"How are your wounds?"

" _Wound,_ only one wound. And it's fine. I healed it. Gonna leave a scar but that ain't new," the slayer said. "But that's not what you want to talk about, right?"

Salem decided it was better to ask directly, he had learned that method worked better with the slayer. "Did you kill the scientist, Zane?"

Without hesitation the slayer said, "I did. He had it coming. Thought you were gonna finish him off, to be honest."

Wrath sighed. "Once Sloth and Envy were safe and Nyrd incapacitated I had no reason to 'finish him off', we are not a guild of assassins. We don't take justice into our own hands. That is not what the Sins Guild is about."

Instead of replying back he stood up and started to walk away.

"Where are you going, Pride? We are not done talking."

"We are, Salem-niisan. I killed the bastard and don't regret it. Nor am I looking for your approval to do what needs to be done. You incapacitated him? Those type of guys can't be stopped, they can only be finished off. I know it from personal experience. People like him only destroy lives. I did what had to be done." Zane could feel his emotions were starting to take over as the nightmares of long ago were threatening to come out. He took a deep breath to keep them in check. "I won't tell you how to protect _them_ Nii-san, but I will do what you won't. Whether you like it or not."

Salem said nothing more, he just looked at Zane leaving the guild. "He's a lot harder to reason with than I had expected."

"Well well, seems the mighty Salem finally met his match," Exuro said as the sound of a cane hitting the floor echoed throughout the empty hall. "The wise Salem has once again proven unable to reason with the dragon boy. Were you expecting the Sin of Pride to admit he did wrong? Might as well ask the sun not to rise tomorrow."

"You just came here to mock me?"

"That and to say I agree with the kid. I know, I know. For me to agree with that loud, immature brat seems beneath me, and you are right. But he has a point. Eliminating threats is more efficient than simply knocking them out. It guarantees we will not experience any future reprisals, Salem."

"I know. But you guys shouldn't be the ones soiling your hands due to my mistakes. That should be my burden. My—"

"Salem! Salem where are you?" A young woman walked down the stairs. Not only was she young but beautiful, and she knew it. Of course she was, what else could be expected from the Sin of Lust? And Elaine loved showing her assets by wearing clothing that left little to the imagination. A short skirt and a tank top that made sure to reveal her flat, fit belly, and the top opened enough to accentuate her generous bosom.

"That's my hint to get out. Seeing you two lovebirds together makes me nauseous."

"Hmph," was all she said. She flipped her chocolate-brown hair in a dismissive fashion. Elaine was not fond of Exuro. She found his personality disgusting. Not like she cared, she only had eyes for handsome men, and that includes her beloved Salem. She hugged him tightly, caressing his strong, shirtless upper body, planting small kisses on his neck.

"Happy that you are rested after your long trip, Elaine," Salem said, returning the hug.

"Did you miss me as much as I missed you?" she asked, giving him a lustful smile. "You weren't going around looking at other girls, right?"

"Of course not, I—"

"Oh, I'm so glad to have such a loyal boyfriend."

He could ask her the same question, but he already knew the answer to that. Her sin is of lust for a reason. Not that she would cheat on him, but she loved teasing guys, and she loved having them drool over her. Being desired by others was her reason to live.

Probably the reason why she disliked Zane. As he seemed to never notice her.

"Salem, don't ever have me go on a mission with that bookworm Gluttony, he's so annoying," she said. "The whole trip he talked and talked and talked about stuff I couldn't even understand."

"Lust, you all have to learn to work together at one point. That's why I always assign different team," Salem replied. "Sooner or later you'll have to team up with Pride."

"That brat?" she gave him a disgusted look. "I hope it is later. Very, very later."

* * *

Zane sneezed all of a sudden. "Hm, that's weird, can't remember the last time I sneezed."

"Perhaps someone is talking behind your back, Mr. Darkfang."

Sitting on a bench under a tree with a thick science book over his lap was the Sin of Gluttony, the last male member of the guild. The 22 year old, skinny—very skinny—light brown skin mage was doing his usual hobby, reading.

"Hey, Jugo, glad to see you back, man," Zane said patting him on his back. "Bet your mission with Lust was a nightmare."

Jugo fixed his nerd glasses. "It was not the most pleasant of missions." As Elaine said he was a bookworm. If the glasses didn't give it away it was way of dressing, clean pants, short-sleeve light blue shirt, and a bow tie. A true man of the science art. With an unquenchable hunger for knowledge.

Jugo's stomach began to rumble. "Seems my appetite has returned. I should go eat something."

And also an unquenchable hunger for food.

"You gonna empty the fridge again?"

A guilty look appeared across the young mage's face. "I will try my best to avoid that." The problem with having a big brain is that it requires large supplies of energy to keep it active.

"Since you are back, wanna have another eating contest?" Zane asked.

"My sincere apologies but I'll have to deny you that request. To my shock I must admit I cannot best you in an eating contest. Even if it was a close race," he said.

"That's because I burn everything I eat. Literally. Your stomach might be big but I have a furnace inside of me."

Jugo adjusted his glasses, focusing on Zane's abdomen. "Once again I must request you let me study you. I must understand how that stomach of yours works. Because no one has been able to outeat me before, not even a group of five men were able to accomplish that."

"Again with the studying me? I told how I feel about that—"

Ignoring anything related to personal space, Gluttony grabbed Zane by the shoulders, pulling him closer. "Please, Mr. Darkfang, you must allow me to do so. I _must_ know how your body, how your magic works. You are a rare sight. I've studied many things. All kids of magic; but Dragon Slayer Magic is something I've never seen with my own eyes." He gave the Dragon Slayer a desperate look. Almost as if he needed his daily fix. It tended to creep most people out.

"I dunno, man. You might wanna step back a bit?"

"Why not?! What right do you have to deny me a simple request. To learn. To study. To know. I. Must. Know!"

When Jugo started to get a little rough Zane's look became serious, almost threatening. "You should step back or else I'll show you Dragon Slayer Magic up close and personal, Jugo." He hoped not to do that. Zane liked Jugo, he thought he wa a fun person to talk to, but sometimes he could become unbearable.

The warning seemed to work on Jugo as he began to regain his composure. He fixed his glasses again. "Forgive me. It is unacceptable of me to ask something that makes you uncomfortable." He started to walk away. "I will be heading towards the library."

Gluttony's insatiable thirst for learning tended to drive people away. He made the library his safe haven. An extremely lonely one, though.

It was something Zane could relate to, all too well.

"Pride, Elaine and I are going out for a bit," the guild master said. His girlfriend standing next to him. "Sloth and Envy are also out."

"So soon? It's only been a couple of days," Zane said.

Seeing Zane worrying about those two made Salem happy. At least he was starting to see the rest of the Sins as friends. "I was thinking the same, but they insisted they didn't want to let their predicament control them. I decided to respect their wishes."

The slayer stretched his arms and placed them behind his head. "Hm, your freaking axe ruined my shirt. Can't fix it anymore. Think I'll go shopping for once."

"Please do so. Make sure you buy something decent. Or at least something that will make you look less like a vagabond," Lust said using a tone of superiority.

 _You know, Atticus was thinking the same thing. Glad to know you have the same thinking process as a cat._ He would have said that, but with Salem standing right there he couldn't. He respected his guild master too much to disrespect his girlfriend. "I'll see ya guys later."

* * *

"You imbecile! What did I told you about facing the master of the Deadly Sins?"

Towering over the captain of the dark guild Crooked Moon was its powerful master, Master Bofors. Tall, with wide, muscular shoulders, a full beard and no hair on his head, Bofors was considered to be one of the strongest dark guild masters around.

"I'm sorry, Master. Please allow me to explain—"

But Bofors would have none of it. "Explain what? How you nearly risked our plans?" he covered his hand with granite, grabbed hold of his captain's neck and lifted him up. The other captains in the hall were terrified but did nothing. Nobody defied Bofors. "We are so close to total victory. Our great dark alliance is risking everything. Troops have been gathered from all over the Alliance, yet your squad, the ones from my guild, were wiped out! You are making a mockery out of me in front of the other masters."

Bofors tightened his grip on the captain's neck. "We need every man we have to capture all of the Sins. The other masters want to make the elimination of those six a spectacle. Before it's too late. Before they get too strong." The master increased the pressure so much he snapped the neck of his captain. "But you almost threw it away."

One of the members gulped as his captain was killed in cold blood. This was the fourth captain of Moon that was killed.

"You…" Bofors pointed at him. "You were his second in command, right?"

"Y-Yes, Master," the young lieutenant said.

"Not anymore. You are the new captain of 2nd squad. I'll give you a mission even a half brain idiot could finish. You are to secure the perimeter of our meeting point. Once the Sins are capture I want nothing coming to interrupt the executions. Do you understand?"

"Y-Yes, Master. I am grateful for your confidence." Without wasting any more time he went for his squad to fulfill his mission.

The other captains and lieutenants stood in attention, waiting for their own orders.

Sitting on a table were three large lacrima, listening through them were the other three dark guild masters that formed the alliance.

"My sources tell me the Sins have separated for various reasons," Bofors said. "Gentlemen, the time has come to make our move; to capture the Sins and eliminate them. With Salem and his Sins gone, the barrier that has kept us at bay from the rest of Fiore destroyed, our alliance will rule over northern Fiore unchallenged!

"Together we shall achieve what no other dark guild or alliance has achieved, total supremacy over the underworld and the civilized world! We will destroy our enemies and take control of this kingdom! It is our destiny! For Crooked Moon! For the Neo-Baram Alliance!"

"For the Neo-Baram Alliance!" The captains and the other masters cheered in unison.


	5. Chapter V: Seven Sins, Arc 1

**Chapter V** : _Seven Sins, Arc 1: Divide and Conquer_

With the seven guild members all going their separate ways for one reason or another it was their perfect time so strike. The first objective was the guild master, the Sin of Wrath. With his ability to locate his members and even find out their condition, neutralizing him was of utmost importance.

But capturing him was so much easier said that done. The rumors of he being as powerful as the Wizard Saints existed for a reason.

"Is going for a walk to the forest just the two of us, asking too much, Salem?" Lust asked. The only thing she wanted, the one thing she had been looking forward to, spending time with her beloved, had been rudely interrupted.

"Trouble always follows me, Elaine. You knew that. Besides, it is not like I asked for this," he said. But Salem knew explaining himself to her was pointless.

Scattered around them were a dozen of Crooked Moon's elite warriors. But even these elite warriors were of no match against the might of the Sin of Wrath.

"I thought I warned you last time not to mess with my Sins. This time I'll do more than warn you." Salem didn't have his axe with him, but his bare hands will have to do.

The squad captain stood up despite his injuries. "Damn. We've all heard about you, but none of us was expecting this crazy strength. Now I get why the master didn't want us messing with you. You're too strong."

"Flattering me won't do you any good. When it comes to my brothers and sisters I don't give second chances."

"Salem!" Lust shouted.

He turned to see a blade just a hair's width away from his girlfriend's neck. And the menacing grin of the man holding her hostage.

The sight of her being in danger began to boil his blood. As Salem began to display why his sin was wrath his magic power began to grow, making the ground beneath them tremble. "You have two seconds to release her or else I'll break every bone in your body."

"I don't think so, Mr. Wrath." The captain took out a chain made of some strange metal. He swung it forward, wrapping the metallic rope around the guild master. "You will be coming with us, instead."

Salem didn't look impressed. With his physical strength a chain was no different than being wrapped with toilet paper. "I'll give you the same warning as him." He was ready to burst the chain and the two men but he couldn't do it, he couldn't even move his arms. "What the?"

Suddenly Salem dropped to his knees. He felt weak, as if every bit of energy in his body had been drained in an instant.

"Like my toy? This is a special chain made out of an enchanted metal that nullifies magic. The more magic you try to use the more it will absorb it."

Lust was tossed to the ground, hands tied behind her back using the same type of chain.

"Elaine! Leave her alone, or else—"

"Or else what?" the captain punched Salem in the face, "you ain't so tough without magic. Stop getting all hot on us or else…" he looked at her for a few seconds then said, "she's a pretty girl, isn't she? Showing her goods and all. Shame if that face got ruined by my friend's knife. That'll teach you a lesson in behavior."

The look of terror in her face made the mighty Sin of Wrath calm himself. If only he wasn't restrained. Getting blinded by rage would not help her.

He took a deep breath. "Don't hurt her."

"I won't. Master Bofors on the other hand," the captain chuckled. "Let's go you dimwits. We make the master wait any longer he'll punch us to next week."

Salem would leave the rest to his Sins.

But he would see them again. Sooner than he thought. Just not in the way he hoped for.

"You went a little overboard with the shopping spree, Zane-kun," Atticus said. He was flying around, following Zane, helping him with a couple of shopping bags.

"I hoard my money too much. Like a dragon protecting his gold in some came," Zane said. "Not a bad thing to spend some of it now that we have settled down."

"It feels nice having a constant place to sleep. And having jobs."

"Feels weird."

The Exceed's stomach growled. "We should finish the day with a meal."

"Our stomachs are thinking the same. Let's find a place to eat," the slayer said.

Atticus saw a familiar face. "Isn't that Gluttony? Let's ask him to join us."

Zane thought about it for a moment, but what the hell, having another person to accompany them couldn't hurt once in a while.

Just as they started for the Sin whose entire attention was focused on a book, typical, two men came out of nowhere, grabbed the skinny man, and fled towards the edge of the town into the forest.

Zane wasn't sure what surprised him the most. That a man would be kidnapped in the middle of the day, or that Jugo did not bothered to put even the smallest of resistance.

He seemed more interested in making sure his precious book was not damaged.

"Would you two unhand me?" Jugo said.

"No can't do, Jugo. Master Bofors has a few words to say to you," one of the kidnappers said.

"B-Bofors?"

"He wants to know why you would betray him after giving you everything you asked for."

"Unhand me, you brutes!" Gluttony began to trash around. Kicking his kidnappers.

"Cut it out." The other kidnapper hit Gluttony with the back of his hand.

The smacked forced the Sin to drop his book. "NO! That is a first edition!" he cried.

"Glad to know you haven't changed, Jugo."

Zane was too late to stop the guys from kidnapping Jugo. They were already in the forest so he ran after them. But with the trees even his sharp eyes would have a hard time. Still, he followed them.

"Up ahead, Zane-kun. I think it belongs to Jugo," Atticus had seen something while flying above the forest.

"This is one of Jugo's books. Maybe he's helping us track him," Zane said. Judging by the way the book had fallen he could guess the direction the kidnappers might have taken. "Let's fly, Atticus."

* * *

"That all of 'em?" one of the members of Crooked Moon asked. He and three others have gathered together after accomplishing their missions.

Right in the center of the group were three of the Deadly Sins, Gluttony, Sloth and Envy.

"I can't believe we got captured again," Envy cried.

"That's it, I'm never leaving the bed again," Nama said in between yawns.

"Hey, aren't we missing the Greed guy?" Nubo, the second in command of the guild's first squad asked.

"Don't worry about that guy. According to Master Bofors he ain't gonna be trouble. Selfish prick values his life more."

"That makes everything easy. And with their master and that Lust chick also captured everything is going according to plan."

"Let's go before you jinx it."

Zane was in earshot of their conversation, and thanks to those dragon ears that made for a conveniently long distance.

Yet, he did not like what he heard coming out of their mouths.

Salem had been captured? No way someone like him could have been captured by those guys.

That meant it was all up to him to rescue them. But how? First he had to find the place where they are keeping his guildmates, then he'll think about how to rescue them. But one thing he was sure of it would end with him kicking butt.

He continued to follow the guys until they reached their destination. It was a massive place, some old walled castle. And it was well guarded. It wouldn't be easy. On the bright side, or maybe dark side, the sun was setting, great, he'll have the cover of darkness to help him. They wouldn't see him coming. Now he just needed to find a way to get in and—

"Hey, what are you doing?" a guard asked.

Crap! Had he been spotted already?

"Don't gotta be so loud. Just talking a smoke break," one of the guild's engineers asked.

"Don't let the master catch you. You know he don't like the smell of smoke."

"Yeah yeah. I work my ass all day repairing the damage to the castle, least I can get is a fucking smoke break." The engineer headed to the forest, still complaining as he went.

Well, looked like finding out what was happening was going to be a lot easier than expected. Made the slayer feel disappointed. It was only natural that things offered him a challenge to test his might and show off, but guess this would have to do.

The Sin of Pride waited until the engineer was out of sight before he made his move.

The engineer took out a smoke and lighted it. Just as he exhaled the first smoke he felt something sharp up his neck.

"If you make a sound, if you make even a slight movement, I'll slice your throat open, understood?" Zane had his razor sharp fingertips ready in case he made anything stupid.

"Drop that thing. Smells disgusting. Then turn around, slowly."

The engineer did as he was told. He wasn't a fighter, just someone meant to keep all of the guild's buildings in shape. Before he could speak a word he was met with a punch to the face, then everything went blank.

When he woke up he found himself tied up to a tree. The ropes were so tight he had trouble breathing. It was dark, he couldn't move, and he seemed far away from his guild's main HQ. What was happening?

"About time you woke up. Guess I punched a little too hard." Zane said. "Sorry for that, seems I need to learn to control my strength."

The Moon engineer was having trouble focusing, was there a boy standing in front of him? The guys at the guild will never let this go. Getting beat up and tied up by some kid. "You are going to be in big trouble when my mates find us. In fact… Look behind you!"

Is this guys serious? No way did he thought such an old trick would work on him. "Dude, I'm a Dragon Slayer. I could have heard or smelled your friends a long time ago. But good try."

"W-What do you want from me?"

"Answers. If you tell me the truth I'll allow you to live. If not, I'll allow you to feel my flames."

Just to prove how dead serious he was Zane ignited a tree that was next to him. It turned to ashes in the blink of an eye.

Should have worn the brown pants instead. "Okay, okay, okay, what do you want to know?"

"Where are the Deadly Sins, and what are you going to do to them?"

The Dragon Slayer and the Exceed had done a quick survey of the dark guild headquarters that was keeping his friends prisoners. It was not looking good.

The entire place was surrounded by guards. Lots of them. That wasn't the problem. He was confident he could take on anyone that got between himself and the Sins, no matter their power or numbers.

The problem was if he was taking on the job of handling the guards by himself, who would rescue the others?

While he was kicking ass the others would be put in danger.

When it come to fighting Zane was a lot of things, but subtle was not even close to one of them. The dark guild would notice fast that he was coming to rescue them. He did not want to imagine what would happen to his friends while he was wasting time pummeling everyone that got in his way.

Not only that. Zane had realized something important. If Salem had been captured then that meant only one possibility: his magic had been neutralized. There's no other explanation as to how someone with that kind of crazy power could have been captured with such ease. The thought of Salem actually being defeated in battle never crossed his mind.

As much as he hated it, going at alone and storming the guild would be foolish. He had no other choice, he would have to ask help, and there's only one person he could ask…

"Ha ha! That is hilarious. I cannot believe Mr. 'I'll protect my Sins' actually got captured together with the rest. The irony is too powerful," the Sin of Greed said.

"I don't think that's funny," the Sin of Pride said.

"Of course not. You are too dense to find the funny things in life." Exuro looked relaxed despite everything Zane had told him. "I figured the guild would end sooner or later. Though not this soon. Oh well, worse things in life happen."

Was he serious? He couldn't even pretend to care a litte. "Do you not realize what happened? I need your help."

"I'm not Salem, kid I have no intention whatsoever of risking my life to protect a single one of you. He might boast that stupid mantra all day long, but not me. I value my life too much for that."

"You're a selfish bastard."

"Don't forget greedy, too."

Zane was ready to punch Exory but he interrupted him. "Think about it, you stupid brat. What exactly are we going to do? Even if I decide to help you how are we going to rescue them? I am sorry but I am not as small brained as you to storm a building full of professionals. Nor would I feel safe knowing you were with me. I don't know what he sees in you but I don't see anything of value."

"I'm strong enough to take care of myself and them—"

"No, you are not strong at all. I hate your type the most. Loud mouths. Those that have nothing but power and no brain are not powerful, they are ticking time bombs. Unstable. I joined this guild because I saw use on your dear guild master. He's strong but smart and reliable. And that is a rare luxury amongst mages of his calibre. I can take care of myself without much problem, but having him as a protector, and for free, well, that is a deal I cannot deny myself.

"You, on the other hand, you are the very thing that frightens me the most, unpredictability. You are a walking stick of dynamite and I don't want to be near you when you finally explode. You might think yourself as this mighty dragon, but you are nothing more than a pup."

Zane was quiet for a long time. Looking at everything but Greed.

"Don't get me wrong. I'm no coward, I did accompany him on many of his searches. But as I said he's reliable, stable, and he knows I do not work for free," he said. "But you, let's say I wouldn't trust you keep me safe from a wingless fly."

"Zane-kun?" Atticus was turning red from all the horrible things Exuro had said to his friend. He was ready to defend him, but Zane's silence worried him. Did he touch a nerve?

"I'll hire you," Zane said.

"I beg your pardon?" Exuro thought he'd misunderstood.

"You said Salem-niisan knows you don't work for free. So I'll hire ya."

Exuro burst in laughter. "Adorable. And what makes you think you have what it takes to hire my services? I do not work for cheap, boy. And I certainly do not do pro bono."

The slayer went into deep thought for a second, as his hamster wheel started to move he called on Atticus and whispered into his ear. "You sure?" the Exceed asked. The slayer nodded. And the Exceed went upstairs.

All the while Greed looked at him with curiosity. "Even if by any miracle you can afford me, as I said, I do not trust you as a partner. You are not reliable enough for me to risk my life in a mission."

"You are wrong. I'll be doing all of the fighting." Zane said.

"Then why do you want my assistance?"

"Someone needs to rescue the others while I'm doing the fighting. That's the plan. I'll storm the building, have their focus on your truly, while you rescue them all. You shouldn't be doing any fighting."

Okay, now he was listening. "What do you have to offer? Cash or a valuable item will do."

"I got this." Atticus placed a statue of a dragon on the table, it was a little smaller than him. It had two rubies for eyes.

Greed was not impressed. "There's a thousand places where I could find and buy a statue like that."

"Really? How many of them can sell you a statue made from the adamantite scales of a dragon?"

Now that was impressive. He took the statue and inspected it. Exuro has seen the rare metal before, but this one was made of something that was not dug out from the ground. If it was made from the actual scales of a dragon, from something that died centuries ago, then it was invaluable.

"You are willing to part ways with something as valuable as this?"

"If it means rescuing them all," Zane replied.

The Sin of Greed thought about it for a moment. He was being offered two things. A valuable piece of art from a bygone era, and the possibility of seeing Zane get his ass kicked in front of the others. That was an offer he couldn't refuse.

But there was something else in his mind. Why was this deal even considered in the first place? Why was Zane standing right in front of him while the others had been systematically captured?

The Sin of Greed was trying to rationalize such a foolish mistake from Bofors. Or was it a mistake? Salem was far more powerful than Zane could ever hope to be, yet here he was and there he was.

Even that lazy Sloth had been captured, again. But the loud mouth had been missed? He couldn't go a day without boasting his great successes in combat or on his...missions!

So that's how!

Zane spend most of his time doing missions than in the guild.

Maybe the odds weren't against them.

"You got yourself a deal, boy."

* * *

 **So, I was planning on adding the last 3 remaining chapters of this small arc all in one weekend, but that proved to be more difficult than I had expected. The next chapter is almost done, while the following one is a short one, so I should be adding the last two this weekend, Monday at the latest. Maybe.**


	6. Chapter VI: Seven Sins, Arc 1

**Chapter VI** : _Seven Sins, Arc 1: Unite and Lead_

There was an area in the castle that have been modified to meet a certain whim. The large, open court of the castle had been turned into an improvised execution arena, pseudo Roman Gladiator style. And right in the middle of it was the main event.

The five Sins were all tied up to five different stone columns. The same magic rope that had been used to neutralize the Sin of Wrath was being used on the rest. Salem was in the middle with Elaine to his right and Hugo to his left, with the two siblings on each flank.

Surrounding them were hundreds of members of the alliance. All sitting comfortably, waiting for the main event to start. Like some sort of match in a Roman colosseum.

"Well, aren't you all a sight to see. To think all of our planning will bear such sweet fruit." Sitting in the balcony area of the amphitheater was the man behind all of this. Master Bofors himself. Next to him were the other dark guild master. "I am honored you all have been able to attend our event."

"Let us go right now, Bofors. Or should I remind you of what happened last time you messed with us?" Salem said.

Bofors jumped out from the balcony into the arena. The ground cracked.

"You are in no position to threaten me, Salem. Without your magic you are not much of a big deal," Bofor said. "So spare me the hero act. There's nothing you can do."

"Why don't you release me and we find out."

Bofors laughed. "You are priceless." Using his magic to turn his fist into stone he punched Salem. Blood smeared his knuckles. "You are no match against me like this. Now, either you behave or the next punch will go to one of the brats."

"If you touch any of them I will break you!"

That only served to irritate the man who was used to having every one of his orders followed without question.

"Guess it will be the hard way."

"Please Master Bofors, don't harm any of them," Jugo cried.

That seemed to calm down the ark guild master. "Well, if it isn't my little traitor. How are you doing, Jugo? Still the same shut in, I bet. Only talking to books, pretending the outside world doesn't exist?"

Hugo didn't say anything. In fact, he was trying to understand why he tried to stop his former master.

"I am still hurt from your betrayal. After all I did for you. I gave you a place to belong, a bed, all the books and information you would have wanted. And how do you repay me?" he smacked Hugo on his cheek with his stoned backhand. It left a red mark on it. "By leaving with this shirtless thug."

"I had no other choice. I…"

"He left because he realized you were exploiting him." Salem spoke for Gluttony. If anyone would take the anger from Bofors better be him. "You used his knowledge to strengthen yourself, your guild, to sell magic to those that use it for evil. Jugo is too kind of a man to do something like that."

"Why won't you shut your pie hole?" As expected Bofors punched Salem a few times. The willpower he needed to hold back as to not break the man's skull. But he had promised a spectacle. "I will punish you personally, Jugo. You know that is what I do to traitors."

Salem was bloodied, though he didn't feel pain thanks to his cursed iron bracer. But he was tough and could take anything Bofors could throw at him without flinching.

"I think it is time we start with the main event."

He was met with loud cheers and claps from his troops. It is what they had been waiting for for months. They were excited. At last, one of their biggest threat was about to vanish.

* * *

"Remember kid, you are the one doing the heavy lifting. I won't be coming to save your ass if things go south," Greed said.

"You keep calling me kid and I'm going to shove my flaming fist up your ass," Zane said.

"And I thought you couldn't sound more immature. Fine, for the sake of saving me another headache."

Both the Sin of Pride and Greed were outside Crooked Moon's castle. They had spent a few minutes observing the place. Looking for the best moment to strike. For an opening. But so far not much luck. At least it was still dark outside, not for long, however.

Zane could hear something coming from inside the castle. It sounded like shouting–No, cheering. Like there was some sort of celebration ready to start.

"I don't like the sound of that. We need to act," the slayer said.

"I hear complaining but not plan coming from your mouth, slayer," Exuro said. He was smart, the guild's genius, but with only Zane at his side any plan was seriously limited. And any plan that relied only on the slayer's reckless power couldn't not be a good one in his mind.

"I'll storm the place. Get everyone's attention set on me. Meanwhile you sneak inside. Find the others and rescue them. Then we can finish whoever I left standing."

That had to be the most hollow, stupid, and most self-centered plan he has ever come across. Maybe it had been a mistake. But he had signed a contract, and Exuro was bound to it. "You really think you can cause enough ruckus to distract everyone?"

"You underestimate my ability to cause mayhem."

Oh no, not at all. If anything Exuro knew he had seen little of what Zane could do.

"You should be honored, you know," Zane said.

"Excuse me?" That snapped Exuro out of his thoughts.

"I know what you are thinking," the slayer said with an overconfident smile. "I am not worth your precious time and effort. But you are wrong. It is you that should be flattered that a Dragon Slayer like me is bothering to ask you for help. You'll be one of the few people alive that will get to see the strongest Dragon Slayer fight."

Before Exuro could even think about a reply to that Atticus was flying off with Zane.

The slayer's arrogance disgusted him. All of his years working in the underground and not once had he met a person with that level of arrogance. Not even the most shady and despicable of villains could come close. That's what made him so dangerous in his eyes. "I'm regretting this decision. But a deal is a deal."

* * *

Exuro touched the fine marble walls that greeted him as he walked down the hallway. They were beautifully done. Elegant, they shouted grandeur and majesty. Fit for a man with great taste for the finer things in life. Like himself. With all of the jewelry he was wearing and the fine silk pinstriped suit, cane in hand, anyone would mistake him for the king of the castle. Not like he would blame them.

What surprised him was the lack of guards. Yeah, Zane had said he would cause a big enough ruckus to get all of the attention, but at least he expected one or two guards guarding the hallway. Something big must be distracting them.

Feeling no pressure to rush he toured the place as he tried to find the others. He searched through every room, empty. Not a soul in place. The quietness of the empty place was cause for concern.

"Is that old fool that confident that no one was going to rescue them that he left the entire inner castle unprotected? Age has made you senile."

Of course, Exuro was too smart to make a mistake like that. If life has taught him anything is that one could never be too sure. No matter how small the risk one should always have a backup plan. If he were the guild master he could have people guarding the place. Foolish mistakes are bad for business. They cost time and money to solve. Two things the Sin of Greed hated wasting.

As Exuro kept walking he could hear noises. They were too faint, and the thick walls made it hard to decipher what they were. Shouting? Maybe cheering? Was it really that difficult for the stupid slayer to have told him what his ears were hearing?

At least he knew the direction to go to.

But just as he got nearer to the epicenter of action the Sin found himself near the guild's meeting room. The door was closed. He pressed an ear on the door, nothing. He checked the handle to see if it was locked, it wasn't. He opened it. Empty.

The alliance's meeting room, unlocked and unguarded. Oh how much he loved this kind of opportunities. It wasn't everyday that one would find the room where plans, ideas and secrets were shared. All of it for his taking.

The room wasn't as impressive as the rest of the castle. The only thing in the room was an oval, wooden table surrounded by wooden chairs. The table was covered in dozens of dossiers and other documents. Some important, some not so.

Exuro read a few of them that contained information regarding the alliance's many sub branches. A list of all the smaller dark guilds that had either pledged their allegiance to the Neo-Baram Alliance or had been forced to submit.

This information was worth its weight in gold. The Alliance had many enemies, not just the Magic Council and the Kingdom, but many other entities that would be willing to pay a pretty coin to learn this information.

Another file caught his attention. This file had Salem's name on it. Exuro took the file and read it. It had information about the Sin's guild master. His magic, his strength and weaknesses. Even the best way to capture him.

"Seems the boy was right. Only way they could have captured him was to neutralize his magic. Even a broken clock is right twice a day," Exuro said.

He found other dossiers with the names of each Sin on them. The same type of information; their magic and how best to capture them. There was even one about him, which was not the most pleasurable reading material to have.

"They did their homework, I'll give them that." One about Zane was nowhere to be found. "I was right. These idiots have no idea about our last member." It seemed to him, maybe the idiot Dragon Slayer's plan won't be as stupid as he had thought.

* * *

All of the members of the Alliance roared and cheered as Master Bofors excited them with the prospect of a live execution.

"Are you ready to see the Sins fall before your eyes?!" the master's question echoed throughout the place. His already deep and imposing voice sounding more imposing than ever.

His voice was drowned by the louder and fanatical cheering of his mages.

Not everyone seemed to share his enthusiasm for the theatrics. The other guild masters watched from above in their private, fancy balcony. The other three guild masters from Blue Viper, Red Skull, and Broken Dagger sat on a large sofa, drinking some expensive champagne. While it looked like they were enjoying the show in reality they wanted it to end.

"What the hell is that fool doing?" Master Zypho, the oldest of the three men, asked.

"Why bother asking, you know how he is," the middle aged Master Chard said. He was the youngest of the Alliance's guild master, but he had been bypassed as the head of the Alliance due to Bofors being the strongest. "This is what happens when you let a showoff become the leader."

"I see you are still bitter, Chard." Exuro was sitting on the bar section of the place. With a drink in hand and a smug smile he said, "That has always been Bofors' way of doing things. Annoying, but that's his style."

"How did you managed to get inside here without the guards noticing?" Master Ank gulped as he asked Exuro. Of all the masters he had been the one that was not entirely sure about their plan.

Exuro used his cane to point at the entrance of the balcony room. The guards charged with protecting the place were on their knees. Two men wearing silver, plated armor, with blades in hand, were next to them. "I brought some company with me."

Chard laughed. "So what, you think you and those shiny knights that belong in a fairy tale are going to be enough to rescue them? To beat the three of us? To beat Bofors?"

"I wasn't talking about my hired help. I am not the one you should be worrying about. But just wait. Any minute now you'll see. Don't worry, you cannot possibly miss him."

The three dark guild masters decided not to do anything against Exuro. They just watched the spectacle before them.

Bofors was savoring his victory. With the Sins captured and helpless in front of him who could stand against him?

"I will show you my kindness, Salem. Since I know how much you hate seeing your band of nobodies get hurt you'll die first."

"If you hurt them—"

"Though I admire your fortitude and your inability to accept when you have lost, enough. Accept it. To show you even more kindness I'll make the deaths of these brats quick."

No sooner had he said those words that the wall of the castle was breached from a large explosion. Pieces of stone and dust scattered over the arena. Three dark guild mages fell on the ground, wounded and burned.

"What is this?" Bofors asked, his mouth covered to protect from the smoke and dust.

"What happened? I happened." The dust cleared away to see a smiling young man standing over a beaten foe. "I am pissed. You five go to take on an entire dark guild alliance, and no one decided to invite me? Hell no!"

"Hi, everyone," Atticus said.

Envy's eyes shined and her cheeks blushed as she gasped his name, "Zane!"

"Pride, what are you doing here?" Salem asked.

"Were you not listening? I said I—"

"Who is this annoying brat?" Bofors had a vein on his forehead.

Zane raised his arm and pointed at the sky. "Hold your breath for you are witnessing the strongest of the Sins. The mightiest Dragon Slayer to have walked on this land. Zane Darkfang, Sin of Pride and Dragon Slayer extraordinaire!"

"Aye, Zane-kun!"

Sin of Pride? The three dark guild masters whispered amongst themselves. "Another Sin? You are telling me Salem finally gathered all of them?"

"Is this the one you were talking about, Exuro?"

"Yes. Unfortunately for all of us, things are about to get loud."

"You are making a mockery out of me, Salem?" How could he had miscalculated this bad? Another Sin, and he just waltzed into his guild without much problems! Bofors looked around the theater until he found the man he was looking for. "Shadyon, remove this pest from my sight!"

Shadyon stood up straight, gave him a military salute, and with a calm and confident look jumped onto the arena. "Yes, Master."

"Consider it an honor to be the first one to be beaten by me," Zane said.

"Zane, wait—" Salem was punched in the face before he could warn him.

"I don't know where you got that brat, but I'll make sure he suffers for insulting me!"

Jugo tried to gulp down the heavy lump in his throat. If he tried to warn Zane about Shadyon's dangerous Nightmare Magic Bofors would punch him too.

"I am Master Bofors' best mage warrior. His enemies are mine to eliminate without the smallest of hesitation."

He had not taken a battle stance before Zane dashed forward and punched him with a flaming fist right in the center of the face. Shadyon was hurled back, bouncing off the ground, smashing into the wall, breaking it on impact.

All of those in the theater gasped in awe and shock, especially those seated in the Crooked Moon section. The sight of seeing one of their guild's elite, considered to be the strongest S-class, and coincidentally the only S-class in the arena, be KO was unbelievable.

The slayer sighed, "Guess you can talk the talk but not walk the walk. Anyone else want a piece of me? Come on! Is there no one here worthy enough to fight me?"

Exuro face palmed himself. Of all the arrogant people he has met over years Zane was in a league of his own. He couldn't believe the stupid slayer was still finding ways to surprise him.

"Stop putting up a show and come rescue us already!" Lust shouted. How dare that slayer be more interested in his own entertainment than rescuing her.

"Would you wait. I got you all front row seats to see me fight. You should be happy about it. Once I'm done here I'll set you guys free," he dismissed her cry and walked away, looking for someone strong enough to fight. "Unless Greed wants to do it, he's here too."

Exuro grinded his teeth. Zane getting beat up a bit better be worth all of this unpleasantness.

"How about you? Bofors, right?" Zane asked. "You the guild master, that means you gotta be strong."

Bofors was red as a radish, ready to make anyone cry. His arms glowed a white light turning his arms into stone weapons, the master then plunging at Zane for the attack. "Hammer of the Stone Emperor!" He swung his heavy fist down.

"Dark Flame Dragon's Meteor Fist!" Zane blocked a fist with his own. "Elemental Enhancement Magic? Been a while since I've seen that. But that can't be all you got."

"Why does he keep provoking him?" Jugo asked. "Doesn't he know just how strong Bofors is?"

Salem was trying to escape, trying to break away the chains around his wrist, but his physical magic wasn't responding. "He knows how strong Bofors is, that's why he's provoking him." He looked at Exuro, pleading him with his eyes either to set them free or assist Zane.

But the greedy man seemed more interested in the fight. Anyone who knew Borofs understood how formidable he was. Especially when dealing punishment. This was going to be entertaining. The best part is that he had the best seat in the house to watch it.

"Can't believe Salem got a Dragon Slayer." Bofors used his free arm to jab Zane.

"That's because his guild deserves the best, and I'm the best there is." He dodged by ducking down and moving in on his taller foe. Igniting his feet he struck Bofors on the chin. "Dark Flame Dragon's Piercing Claw!"

The kick forced Bofors to stumble back, but he'd managed to decrease the damage by using his magic to fortify his chin. "You're a cocky brat, but you are strong. Why don't you leave Salem's guild? It's done for already. Besides, I need a new second in command."

Hearing the offer made Salem stop struggling to get free. Made him hesitate for a second. Though every member of Sins guild was welcome to leave if they chose to he knew they would never join a dark guild. Yet it worried him that the flattering would work on the Sin that constantly wanted his power acknowledged by others.

Zane pondered the request for a moment.

"You are not thinking about it, right, Zane-kun?" Atticus asked.

"I can't blame him for asking," Zane said. "He saw how strong I am and he wants me. Honestly, I should have him and Salem fight for me."

"Pride…" Salem whispered.

"Zane-kun…"

"Relax you two. I ain't joining a dark guild. I've wiped out too many of them to just join one. And Salem made a promise to me, and I intend to see him fulfill it. Right?"

Salem laughed. "Yeah, you can count on it." He felt foolish for losing confidence on one of his members.

"Ah! Why does he keep getting the spotlight like that?" Envy groaned. "Can't you use your Curse to set us free, Onii-chan?"

"Can't. Hands are tied behind my back. If I can't point I can't stop time," Sloth replied.

"You are making a big mistake, boy," Bofors growled. "You won't get this offer again."

"Shove it! You are not worthy of me. Dark Flame Dragon's Black Lotus Rain!" The Dragon Slayer fired dozens of fire missiles from his mouth.

That blast damage was again reduced thanks to his Stone Emperor Magic enhancing the physical resistance of his body. "I am going to shut that big mouth of yours. Spears of the Stone Emperor!" Stone spikes exploded from the ground when Bofors slammed his hands against the floor.

"Atticus!"

"Aye!"

The Exceed flew Zane away from the stone spikes.

"Where do you think you are going, boy?" Bofors asked.

Zane looked up to see a giant stone weapon waiting for him. "When did he…?"

"Battlemace of the Stone Emperor!"

The weapon struck the slayer's side. The impact sent both the boy and the Exceed crashing to the ground.

"Atticus, are you okay?" Before the slayer could stand up to assist his friend he felt the shadow of the massive old dark guild master over him.

Bofors raised his stone fist and quickly brought it down to squash Zane's head like a melon.

Zane rolled away, Bofors' fist smashed the ground open. The fact that that hole on the ground could have ended on his skull didn't deter him from counter attacking. "Sword Horn!"

Zane's fiery forehead meet the side of head of the guild master. Both men stumbled back. The slayer felt blood coming from his forehead. And noticed Bofors smiling. The bastard used his magic to turn his head to stone.

"I will turn every bone in your body to dust, boy. Even if it means using every bit of magic in my body." Bofors placed a his hands in front of him to cast a brown magic circle. "Machinegun of the Stone Emperor!"

Dozens of shards of stones were fired from the circle at Zane. All of different sizes, thickness and sharpness. But all of them ready to turn the slayer to Swiss cheese.

Pride dodged the attack by skidding back as fast as possible. The stone missiles striking the ground just inches away from him.

He fired his breath attack only to have it blocked by a thick stone wall.

"Is that the power of a dragon? I was expecting more from a Dragon Slayer. No wonder the dragons are dead," Bofors laughed.

Now that pissed Zane off. He would have to kick his butt three times as hard.

Just as he was about to throw a can of whoopass two more dark mages dressed in ninja outfits materialized on the into the arena, they used a long chain to immobilize the slayer.

"What took you two so long?" Bofors asked the two brothers.

"We were waiting for the best moment, Master," one brother said.

"We both felt you wanted to enjoy the fight a little longer," the other brother replied.

"Coward! Fight me one on one, don't get your lackies to help you." Now the slayer was twice as pissed. "Fight fair."

"Fight fair? We are a dark guild, we don't do fair. Golem of the Stone Emperor!"

The ground behind the Sin of Pride erupted, releasing a pile of dirt and rock taller than him, and a giant golem made of stone that was at least three times the size of the short slayer.

"I can't feel my magic?" Trying to melt the chains away proved useless.

"You came here expecting a fair fight, then you are a bigger fool than I could have expected." Bofors manipulated the Golem's arm to strike the powerless slayer on the back.

Zane felt the air leaving his lungs, the back of his rib cage breaking, the taste of blood in his mouth, his skull vibrating, and his sight blurring.

With another movement of its master's hand the Golem punched him in the stomach, lifting the white-haired boy off the ground. The two brothers had to brace themselves as to not be lifted as well by the force of the mighty stone monster. But they kept their smiles, nonetheless.

The golem kept hammering Zane, pummeling him more and more, breaking the ground under him.

Salem was losing his cool. He didn't know want angered him the most, seeing one of his members get hurt or his inability to do anything about it. He looked up at Greed, letting his eyes do all the talking.

Exuro sighed. "Fine." It was fun while it lasted. Then again, it was better than having Salem be on his ass for not doing anything, and losing Zane would only do him damage, as annoying as he was the boy brought in the big bucks taking risky missions none of the others would take.

"You realize you owe me, a lot, right?" Exuro appeared next to Salem out of thin air.

"I do. Now get these things off before they kill him," Salem said.

"Alright." Exuro pushed a button on the hilt of the cane that unlocked the cane and letting him pull out a sword from inside.

One of the dark guild masters noticed what was happening down below. Chard turned around to see the bar area empty, and the armed men he had brought were also gone. "He caught all three of us in one of his illusions?"

Atticus couldn't watch any more. He flew at high speeds, trying to reach for the chains that were nullifying his friend's magic. But the golem swatted him away.

The young Exceed dropped to the ground, losing consciousness before touching the ground.

Zane snapped at the sight. "You bastard! I'll kill you for that, you hear me! Kill you!"

"I told you you would pay for making a mockery out of me." Bofors joined his hands together, the golem followed, "Great Warhammer of the Stone Emperor!"

The golem lifted its heavy stone arms above its head. In one quick movement it brought them down to create Dragon Slayer paste.

Zane was to blinded by his anger to pay attention.

Exuro broke the chains with a good strike of his blade, releasing Salem. The chains were not even halfway to the ground before he had vanished. The speed of his movement created a strong recoil that hurled Exuro to the ground.

He cursed. The clothes he was wearing cost a damn eye.

"Begone with the rest of your worthless kind, Dragon Slayer!"

When the golem's joined hands struck they sent a powerful quake around the castle, the walls waved, the spectators braced themselves, dust scattered, blocking everyone's sight from the obvious carnage in the arena.

"This is testament to those that dare challenge Crooked Moon, the Neo-Baram Alliance, and my power," Bofors proclaimed. Now anyone that doubter his leadership would be silenced.

"This is a testament only to your cruelty, nothing more, Bofors." The clearing of the dust revealed the Sin of Wrath stopping the golem's attack with a single hand.

His mightiest attack had been blocked? He looked around to see the twin brothers on the floor. When did he do that?

"This is my testament that I will always protect my guild." He poured magic into his right fist. Then punched the golem, destroying its fists. The stone behemoth was pushed back, crumbling in the process. Until nothing but a pile of shattered stone remained.

When Salem turned to face Bofors he was, well, if looks could kill Bofors would be nothing but ashes. He took a single step towards the man responsible for hurting Zane, when his sandal touched the ground the pressure created a wide crater. "You hurt him in front of me, you threaten to kill them all, you won't be seeing any mercy from me."

Bofors took a step back without even noticing. "What the hell is with this magic pressure? W-What kind of monster are you?"

"I hate losing my cool, but when you hurt them I—"

"Then don't."

Salem turned after hearing Zane's voice. He was standing up, eyes burning with a fiery passion, veins on his forehead, and black scales on his cheeks.

"Pride?"

"That bastard humiliated me, insulted my dragon heritage, and had the guts to hurt Atticus… You won't take this away from me. He. Is. Mine!"

The Dragon Slayer erupted. Dark flames clothed his body. They were intense enough to start molting the ground under and around his feet.

 _Where is this massive surge in magic power coming from?_

"What is happening to him? What's with those ugly scales?" Lust asked.

 _What's with this power? Where was he hiding it?_ Greed was in disbelief. This was one of those things he hated, unexpected events.

While everyone else was wondering what was happening and why Gluttony's eyes were glowing with excitement. "Ah… Ah! That's Dragon Force!"

"You mean to tell me that brat was hiding that kind power all this time?" Great, just what that pain in the ass needed more, power.

"Pride, let me handle this," Salem said.

Zane was not interested, however. He went in for the kill, moving at a speed Salem had not seen him use before. "I will crush you. Dark Flame Dragon's Meteor Fist!"

Bofors just smiled as his head turned to stone. Looked like the kid just never learned.

"Hidden Fire Form - Dark Lotus: Dragon Demolition Fist!"

The black flames around Zane's fist grew bigger, hotter and more violent. When it connected to Bofors' face it exploded on contact.

The dark guild master stumbled back, gasping as smoke came out of his ugly mug. The stone that protected it was cracking to pieces. "Impossible… with a single punch… my armor… all of this damage…"

"What are you fools doing? Help Bofors and stop the Sins!" One of the masters shouted from the balcony.

Immediately, the arena was surrounded by dozens of dark guild members, not just from Crooked Moon but the whole Alliance.

"Stop the Dragon Slayer, protect Master Bofors." At least ten loyal warriors of the master charged behind Zane.

Salem intercepted them. No way he was letting them touch one of Pride's white hairs. "Sin Magic: Bullet Strike!"

With a fast and true swing of his fist the Sin of Wrath created an air bullet. The spinning attack carried with it enough speed and power to blow away all of the attackers at the same time. Sending them all in different directions. The attack left a streak over the ground, widening as it neared the castle walls.

Salem's guild mark, along with the others, glowed. "Everyone. This is the first time all seven of us are together. It is time we show those that try to conquer us just how strong we are when we fight united."

"Whatever you say, darling."

"Sounds like a drag, but okay."

"Everyone will get to see me fight."

"All seven Sins fight? This is worth studying."

"I'll make sure to charge you all for this."

Their guild master would not let Zane's battle be interrupted. He had understood why he had unleashed this power now, and not when he had fought the slayer. Bofors stomped his pride.

Just as the Sins had been rallied the rest of the Alliance's fighters charged at them. They outnumbered them ten to one, at least. And they had four guild masters against their one. Surely the odds were in their favor.

"Jugo you traitor I'll make sure you pay for this this time," the man that had kidnapped him said. "I know about all of the magic you learned while you were part of the guild, I can counter your every move." With a hatchet in hand he attacked.

Jugo adjusted his glasses then smirked. "What about the magic I learned after leaving? Forest Magic: Fairy King's Righteous Whip."

Thick roots sprouted from the ground, wrapping themselves around the attacker. The roots moved independent of Jugo, only thinking about protecting him. They figured the best way was to send the attacker as far away as possible. They spun him around, gaining speed with every spin, then threw him outside of the arena.

"Death to traitors." Another dark mage fired magic blast from a staff at Jugo, only to have them blocked by the roots.

"Fairy King's Guard Bullets." The roots sprouted hundreds of thorns, which they quickly fired at the dark

He found himself impaled by dozens of thorns all over his body. He ran around in pain, the ones in his butt hurt the most, then he passed out.

The rest of the Sins found themselves in similar situations.

Lust found herself in front of a similar face. "Weren't you the brute that threatened to harm my face?"

"Nice to see ya again, babe. Why don't ya leave that kid boyfriend of yours and get with a real man?" The other men next to him agreed with him.

She flaunted her hair dismissively. "As if you five could compare to my darling."

"Come on, babe. Don't be like that."

There are many kind of men that made Elaine lust, those men, rude, brutish, ugly, did not fit the bill. "Only one person gets to call me like that."

"Hey, ain't it getting a little chilly in here?" one of her foes asked.

"Now that you mention it, who turned off the heat?"

"That boy isn't the only slayer in the guild," Lust said, "Ice God's Frost Kiss." She sent a gust of ice powder at them, lowering the temperature around their area to freezing levels. They were all turned into popsicles before they realized what had happened. She gave them her back and walked away, she wanted to find her dear boyfriend.

"Lust can be scary, huh, Onii-chan?"

"That's our Ice Queen. Wonder if she's acting like that because she becoming the guild's S-class is no longer a sure thing."

The Taidama siblings, Sora and Nama, were surrounded by foes. There was nothing to fear, thanks to Nama's Time Curse their foes were little more than statues.

"Hmm, maybe. But you know how she can be. One day she's angry at one thing, next day is a whole different thing," Envy said.

"Yeah. Sora, you might want to get back in the game, I can't hold them off forever." Sloth sighed, this was turning out to be such a drag.

"Sorry, Onii-chan." The Take Over Mage turned her arms into feline paws. She jumped around, hitting the immobilized mages one by one with her Wild Strikes.

Nama's Curse ran its course, and a few of them managed to be set free before Sora could get to them. Celebration was premature, however.

"If you think I'm some one trick pony you are mistaken." The guild's hybrid started to take on more of his true form. His ears became pointed, and curved golden horns grew atop his head. "Pursuit!"

He fired four energy orbs at the fleeing foes. The magic attack pursued them. No matter what direction they took the attack tracked them. The moment the orbs touched them they detonated.

"Sometimes I forget you can use magic, Nama."

"Maybe doing this once in a while isn't such a drag. But let's take a long break after this."

Alone the siblings weren't much of a big deal, but they had perfected their tag team, and that made them a formidable force.

Exuro wasn't into the battle as the rest of them. He just wanted to get this over with before more of his clothing got ruined. He tapped his cane on the floor a couple of time and said, "Memory Make: Roar of the Mighty Earth."

The ground to his flanks cracked open, roaring in the direction of men that were trying to kill him. At least half a dozen on each side were swallowed by the ground.

"Hmph, fast, clean, and with little drama. How I like my fights," the Sin of Greed said.

He might like the lack of drama, but the two mage around him certainly didn't.

"You blasted boy. I will not be defeated by the likes of you. Spears of the Stone Emperor!" Another barrage of stone spikes headed Zane's way.

"Dark Flame Dragon's Roar!" The fire roar was much bigger than anything he had fired before. It blasted through the stones spikes with little effort. Humbling them with its heat.

Bofors couldn't even move. There was no place to. The roar was so big it swallowed him whole when it hit him. And it kept going forward, hitting the seating area. The heat of the roar overwhelmed the stone, melting the walls of the castle and everything nearby.

Seeing Bofors be pushed back made the other three dark guild masters think about the decision they had taken. Maybe Bofors' plans had been too ambitious. Everything was falling apart, literally. There was no other choice. .

"Let's go. It is best for us to retreat, regroup and count our losses" Master Ank said.

Chard nodded. Despite everything he couldn't help but smile, maybe with this they would see the mistake that it had been to appoint Bofors. "Live to fight another day. A sound advice."

"I have another sound advice. Don't mess with the Deadly Sins Guild." Salem said as he finished punching one of the guards through the wall.

"You must be very confident if you think you can take on all three of us," Master Zypho said.

The three master unleashed their impressive magic to charge their most powerful spells. The room started to shake as their magic merged to form one large blast, furniture danced around, glasses fell, shattering into pieces, the light bulbs popped.

When their Unison Raid was launched it blasted the furniture away.

With little room to maneuver Salem stood there, taking the mighty attack head on.

The three masters laughed between themselves. Without his magic cancelling axe the Sins guild master was not a problem. Now they had to deal with the rest of the trash. That included Bofors. This was all his fault. This failure had turned into a disaster. He would have to be…

The guild masters stopped their chatting when they felt an incredible magic force coming from the smoke created by the explosion from their attack.

"Whether it is three of you or three thousand I'll take on all that threaten my guild." The Sin of Wrath's tribal tattoos had been activated with the mild damage he had taken, together with an increase of magic power. His right fist began to glow as he prepared for his attack. "Sin of Magic: Furious Fist!"

With a single strike the entire balcony and parts of the castle had been blown away. The building started to collapse, taking the dark guild masters down with it.

Exuro sighed at the unnecessary destruction happening around him. On one side the arena was melted away, on the other the castle had been destroyed. Those two were going to give him gray hairs.

At least this time they wouldn't have to pay for the damages.

"My castle! My guild. My plans. You have ruined everything!" Bofors was feeling an anger and outrage he didn't know he had inside of him.

"Shut up!" Zane's kick to the chin lifted the man off the ground. It was an effective way of shutting people up.

"What kind of monster are you?!"

"I ain't a monster. I'm a Dragon Slayer."

Bofors could not believe the slayer's magic was still increasing this much. He gulped and crawled back as the slayer walked towards him. "S-Stay back. Stay back. I… I surrender."

Surrender? Oh no, it was already too late for that. Zane's switch had been flipped on, there was no stopping him now. Zane hissed. "What was it you said earlier? Right, you were going to turn every bone in my body to dust even if it meant using all of your magic. Pathetic. I met someone capable of doing that without breaking a sweat.

"You kidnap my mates. Harm my best friend. Insult my father by belittling the magic of dragons. And you ask for mercy?" Zane created two swords out of his fire magic. "You are not worthy of fighting me."

Bofors stood up. He'd had it. Dying here was not worth it. The guild, and to an extension, the alliance, could be rebuilt. "What?"

"I said. You are not worth it!" Two large fire wings formed themselves on Zane's back. He flapped them, propelling the slayer forward. In an instant he was standing in front of his enemy.

 _At this distance…_

Bofors couldn't even finish his thought before Zane attacked.

"Dragon Slayer Secret Art: Twin Dragon Sword Dance!" The Sin of Pride swung both of his fire blades at the same time, forming an X-shape slash.

"Gah!" The stone armor that had been protecting Bofors had been destroyed, pieces of the armor flying everywhere. The master of Crooked Moon collapsed.

Zane stared down at the unconscious Bofors. The man had insulted him, trampled his pride, hurt Atticus. Something inside of him needed to be released. So he roared. Letting it all out.

The roar was so loud it echoed throughout the remaining walls standing. It startled everyone, stopping the scattered fights.

"Hey, Master Bofors was beaten?"

"The kid defeated the master?"

"The other masters were beaten too."

The remaining mages of the Alliance were shaken to see the leadership bested by the Sins. Demoralized they all ran away. Without their masters the dozens of mages still standing no longer knew what to do.

Salem placed his hand on Zane's shoulder, ignoring the fact that the slayer's magic was still active. "Pride, that's enough. You defeated him. There's no reason for you to soil your victory."

Zane relaxed. The fire around his body vanished, so did the scales on his face. "Where's Atticus?"

"I have him." The blonde Exceed was sleeping between Sora's arms. "Don't worry. He's unconscious but he's not injured.

Seeing his friend out of danger made the Dragon Slayer smile. Everything was good.

Exhausted from the battle and from Dragon Force, the slayer lost consciousness. Salem held him before he fell.

Envy and Lust were not thrilled to see Salem doing that.

"You were full of surprises, Pride. I'm glad to see you care for the guild enough to show your true strength. Thank you."

"Yeah yeah. The boy is full of wonders. Let's go already. I want to avoid the hassle that is sure you to come once the Magic Council finds out about what happened here," Exuro said.

"Thank you for rescuing us, Greed."

"If you are thankful then pay me."

Salem chuckled. He was proud of all of them. The guild had fought together against dangerous odds and overcame them. He had nothing to fear. Together the Seven Deadly Sins Guild was unbeatable.

"Sins, let's head back home."


	7. Chapter VII: Aftermath

**Chapter VII** : _Aftermath_

"I didn't know you could activate Dragon Force, Mr. Darkfang." Jugo had someone managed to convince Zane to let him inspect him. He was using a stethoscope and a pair of magic glasses that allowed him to see the inside of a person's body, even study the behavior of their ethernano.

"Why do you sound so surprised? I'm the best, remember?" Zane said. When were people going to learn that obvious fact?

"Guess I did not take into consideration–Ah!" Jugo yelped after touching the scolding hot stethoscope. If he was going to continue his analyzes on Zane he should get tools that are heat resistant.

"If you two would excuse me. I'll be going to my lab to do further studies on the matter." Jugo packed all of his tools back into his leather bag before he retired to the guild.

When they were alone Atticus spoke. "You lied to him, Zane-kun."

The slayer scoffed. "And what would you'd preferred for me to say? That I can't control Dragon Force? That I can't decide when to activate it? That I lose control whenever it activates? Oh yeah, that sounds so much better." He couldn't say something like that. It was humiliating.

Atticus should have known better. Now he felt guilty. "I'm sorry."

"For what? It's not your fault. I know I should be open with them. But they'll look down on me if I am." Zane had a suspicion Salem had notice his lack of control. Had he not stopped him Bofors would have been killed.

"Let's go get something to eat."

"Aye!"

Salem stared at both of them from his window as they walked away, he was in his room in the upper part of the guild. While in front of others he kept the same cool, unshakable attitude, alone he felt depressed and angry. He had come so close to losing everything. The Sins, the people he called his brothers and sisters, they were nearly killed and he wouldn't have been able to stop it had it not been for the reckless plan of Zane.

He was the guild master. The one that had recruited them with promises of redemption, of a new life. Of safety. They came so close to dying because of his failure to protect them. He got captured and had to be rescued.

Was he even qualified to call himself master?

It was during these times of doubts he wished his old master was still alive to advise him. Knowing him he would be scolding Salem, saying he was overestimating his powers and abilities. That he still had much to learn as a master. Yeah, that sounds about right.

A single knock on the door brought Salem out of his thoughts. "I would like to be alone for a little longer. If you want to go on a mission just leave the application on the counter."

"I am too old to be asking you for permission to go on missions, Salem," Exuro said. "I need to talk to you, it is important."

"Can it wait?"

"Can it wait? Time is a valuable commodity, Salem. One I hate wasting." Especially when the time being wasted was his own. "This is important. You got a letter from the big men upstairs."

From whom? "What are you talking about, Exuro?"

The Sin of Greed handed a sealed envelope to Salem. "You do know I am not your messenger boy, right? Get one of the brats to do it. Or better yet, hire an errands boy. I'm sure I can find one for cheap."

"Don't make jokes like that. We don't need an errands boy." Salem looked at the envelop and the seal it had on it. "This is from the Magic Council?"

"Yes. I wonder if they pissed at you for the chaos caused with the collapse of the Alliance?" Exuro knew the destruction of prominent dark guilds lead to one thing, their branches being devoured by the other dark guilds, and that was far from a peaceful event. It made the dark guilds go haywire, increasing their activity around the lands. It made the Council and its rune knights work twice as hard to keep the dark guilds in check.

"So, what is it? Arrest warrant? List of all the laws you broke? Wait, don't tell me. They want to take custody of dragon boy for the destruction he caused?" Exuro didn't bother to hide his excitement for that last option.

"It's an invitation," Salem said not believe what was written on the paper.

"A what?"

"An invitation. To the Grand Magic Games."

* * *

Hello everyone. For those of you that have been following my fanfic from day one, I am sure you have noticed a chapter was removed. Well, after some serious thinking I've decided not to continue the path I was following. Instead, I have decided to change villains and start a whole new different arc. It'll be much bigger, with more dangerous threat, and it will involve adding a lot of new characters and guilds. I am sorry if you were interested the original path, but I didn't like it. Hope you like what I will be adding soon!


	8. Chapter VIII: Golden Gryphon

**Chapter VIII** : _Golden Gryphon_

Every mage in the dark guild of Black Dawn was riled up as their master was going through another one of her moments of rage. And how could she not? She had just been give a terrible news. She hated bad news.

"You morons! What do you mean Snake Bones beat us to the punch and conquered the east branch of Crooked Moon?!" Master Asuna had to control every fiber of her being not tear her black hair and use it to strangle her incompetent members. "What was the point of sending two squads to capture it before Bones, then?"

"Sorry master, they got there first and they outnumbered us. There was nothing we could do," her second in command said. "We would have been crushed."

The only thing Asuna hated more than bad news were excuses. "When I'm done with you all would have wished to have be beaten by the enemy."

"You are going to regret those words."

The main gate to the guild hall blew up, punched inwards by a single mage.

A young mage, wearing martial arts clothing, stood where the doors used to be. His height and bulk blocked the entrance and the view to the outside, legs spread apart, arms on hips and elbows bent. He stood up like a superhero, giving the villains a proud and cocky smile. "Yo, we came to crash this party!"

"Sage, move aside."

The tall mage moved aside to reveal a slightly short but more thin young man standing behind him. His white skin looked like it had come from a ceramic doll's. Just as emotionless except for the slight sign of irritation. "I keep reminding you to stop blocking the doors."

"Shit, sorry, Andras. I keep forgetting. I just love making epic entrances and shit," Sage said.

"Stop using that foul language with me. I'm not like the thugs you like to surround yourself with," Andras said as he finally managed to find the space to move in.

"Again, sorry Andras."

While the two mages were arguing with each other the dark guild mages looked at them with disbelief. Those two mages looked ready to storm the guild but instead they are just standing there talking nonsense. Their guild was being seriously underestimated.

"Who the hell are you two and what are you doing here?" The guild master asked.

One of her mages gasped. He pointed at two young mages. Sage in particular. "His guild mark. They are from Golden Gryphon!" What he was pointing a shaky finger at was the white gryphon tattoo on Sage's abdomen.

At that moment the hostile attitude of everybody in the hall changed to hesitation.

Golden Gryphon, Fiore's top guild. Legendary for possessing many of the kingdom's most talented and powerful mages.

There was a reason why all of the mages had been conquered by a sense of hesitation. Both Sage and Andras stood at the top of Golden Gryphon as the guild's elite S-class mages. Many a dark mage had come to understand that up close and personal.

Master Asuna felt a rage swell within her as her mages simply stood there like idiots. "So what if they are Gryphon's dogs. They are only two. Crush them!"

The tone of rage in her voice woke up the dark mages. Their hesitation replaced by the fear they had for their master. In all honesty it was better to try and fight them and be defeated than feel the wrath of Asuna.

All of the mages released a shout to try and get in the moment. They charged forward, screaming victory and insults. Magic and non magic weapons at the ready to attack the enemies of Black Dawn.

"Seems the one encouraging them from behind is their guild master," Andras said.

"Shit, Andras you know I ain't like fightin' chicks," Sage said.

"I know, so why don't you do what you do best and tear a path for me so I can deal with her?"

The excited buff mage pumped his fists together. "Aight. I ain't gonna let these punks waste your time, Andras."

Granite formed over and around Sage's knuckles until they took the shape of stone gauntlets. He threw a couple of punches at the air to check if they worked, and the he charged forward. He jumped to land a punch against the ground where the dark mages had clustered in a group. "Gaia's Breaker Fist!" When the fist touched the ground massive stone pillars erupted, the force of the eruption hurled a dozen dark mages to the side.

This was the devastating power of Sage, a type of Earth Take Over that increased his already powerful physical strength. And he would use that to do exactly what his dear buddy Andras wanted him to do. "Which one of y'all bitches wants to be the first one to feel my fists?"

An enemy mage took the challenge, he swung his greatsword to cut Sage in half. But Sage quickly coated his arm with his magic to harden it. The sword hit him and bounced back, the blade received a few cracks. He didn't have the time to even cry as his brand new blade had been damaged because Sage punched him in the face, breaking the nose and a few teeth.

Sage placed both of his fists in front of his face and smirked. "Anyone else?"

The dark mages realized a one on one was probably not the best of ideas. Instead they all went at him. They surrounded the Golden Gryphon mage.

A sound tactic for sure, but not one that would work against someone that specializes in close quarter combat. For Sage Blackstone was a brawler. Punching and kicking was his thing. He didn't have time for strategies or analyzing, he left that to Andras.

Speaking of, Andras just looked at the fighting happening just a few feet away. "If they had a few mages that used range attacks then they could make him sweat a little," he said. But he couldn't expect much from a low tier dark guild. It made him wonder why both of them had needed to come. But then again, Master Grau could be a little overcautious.

Regardless, Andras did as he had been asked. For the honor of the guild depended on it. While Sage had his blast punching faces and breaking bones the man known as the guild's Dark Angel went for the master, not wanting to waste the opportunity his partner had given him.

A few dark mages were having second thoughts on whether or not to challenger a man that broke rock as easily as one broke glass. Those that were at the end of the group that surrounded Sage decided to go for Andras. He looked easy enough. He was much skinnier compared to the hulk that was sending mage after mage flying with his fists.

One of them fired a lightning blast while the two on his flanks fired fire beams. The three magic attacks merged together to form a mightier attack. It was about to make contact with the target when it was suddenly cut into two, right in the middle. The two beams each went besides him and exploded safely behind him.

Not one of the three dark mages knew what had happened. One of them swore he saw Andras move his right hand before the attack reached him, but had been too fast for him to be sure.

"I do not take kindly to those that underestimate me. Just because I am not as reckless as my air-headed friend over there doesn't mean I'm weaker." Andras placed his right hand just an inch away from the left side of his hip, then in an instant took a swing at his opponent. Each of them slashed by a streak of darkness.

The guild master sighed in disgust. She was surrounded by a bunch of useless idiots. "Hmph, so you are the one known as the dark angel, isn't it? A bit edgy don't you think?"

Andras remained serious and silent.

She laughed at him. "And what's with that attire? Dark overcoat over a black shirt? Are you going through a phase? At least your friend there looks—"

In terms of physical attributes Sage had Andras beat in almost aspect except one. Speed.

He stood just inches away from Master Asuna. His blade a hair's width from her tanned neck. "I'm not here to make conversation with you. Just to crush your guild."

Sweat dripped from her forehead down to her cheeks. She had failed to see him coming. Had he used the moment she closed her eyes to laugh to move in? "Don't get cocky, you brat. Or you'll get burn."

Fire coated her entire body. It was hot enough to force Andras to take jump a few steps back. Asuna used the opportunity to gain distance. Her whole body turned into a large orb of fire as she moved back. After gaining the necessary distance her body returned to normal.

"Asuna the Living Blaze. Now I see the reason for that nickname," Andras said.

"You wish that was the reason, you annoying boy. Allow me to demonstrate you." In between her hand Asuna formed a sphere of blue fire. As more and more magic was poured into it that made the sphere grow she smiled at him a sly and excited smile. "Have you heard what I do to those that defy me?"

"I saw your brand on the faces of several member of Snake Bones before crushing it."

That answered was unexpected, but it didn't make her lose any concentration. "Then you should have gone home after that." Once the spell was charged she released a beam of blue fire. "Blazing Azure Beam!"

The sleek blade Andras held was soon consumed by darkness. "Lightless Slash." With a quick swing of the blade Andras unleashed a long, crescent shaped attack of darkness against the Azure Beam.

His slash cut right through the middle of her attack, just how it had done previously against the combined attack of the three dark mages.

Asuna moved out of the way before the attack struck her. Instead hitting the wall behind her, destroying it. "What was that?"

"I simply focus my Lightless Magic around my sword to be able to cut through magic," he replied.

Asuna's eyes were wide open with fear. That had been her strongest attack and it had been beaten almost with no effort. She turned to look behind the man that was walking near her to see just a handful of her men still standing. "S-Stay back! Don't come any closer or—"

"Or what? What can someone like you who made the mistake of showing me their fear do against me?" A dark aura surrounded Andra's body as he released his magic power. From his back sprouted two long, feathered black wings.

That was not a spell.

"Oh shit, he's getting serious. She pissed him off, then. Well, I guess I'll get serious too."

As Sage manifested an impressive magic power the earth beneath his feet reacted to it. It started to shift, expand, even pieces erupted upwards. The gauntlets that had covered his knuckles soon grew, covering his arms all the way up to his elbows. He was doing a partial Take Over, as even he knew releasing Gaia's full power was overkill.

Once both mages had unleashed part of the power they focused it, Sage on his right arm and Andras on his precious blade.

"Wait! We give up," Master Asuna said. But too late she had realized how outmatched her guild was.

"Lightless Slash."

"Gaia's Crushing Hammer!"

The simultaneous release of two attacks caused parts roof and the part of the hall's wall to explode outward. The smoke caused by the explosions was visible for miles.

Fortunately for both mages allies instead of enemies saw the smoke and located their location.

"Oh dear, do either of those two know how to restrain themselves?"

"I don't think Sage even knows the definition of the word restrain. Andras, well, you know how he is. He doesn't hold back against anyone. Especially against dark mages."

A couple had arrived outside of the guild, they were also part of Golden Gryphon. It was a pair of siblings. A tall guy and a shorter girl. Both of them wore high fashion clothing. He wore a white vest over buttoned white suit with blue trims. She had a light red dress, long to cover her legs all the way down to her white heels. She carried an umbrella to shield her fair face.

Maximilian and Fely von Stryfer, the guild's pair of second generation Dragon Slayers.

"I do feel bad for the mages of this guild," Fely said.

"Really?" Maximillian looked at her with doubt.

"Well, just a little bit. I mean, only because they have to deal with those two. At least us three didn't have to take things too seriously."

"Speaking of three, where's Rayden?"

Both siblings looked around to see their trio was just a duo. Where had their energetic Devil Slayer friend gone to?

Fely sighed. "That idiot can't stay still for a second, can't he?"

Max nodded in agreement.

"They are finally done." Fely looked all excited when the two S-class mages finally left the enemy guild, or what was still standing. She released a sigh that came straight from the heart. "Andras looks so cool after fighting."

"He looks like that every single day. Andras' blank stare never changes." The older brother had no idea what she talked about. They've known the man for over three years and during that time he had shown nothing close to an emotion, save annoyance.

"You're a man so you don't understand. Sometimes a girl likes a cool and serious guy," she replied.

He simply rolled his eyes. They've had this conversation before and it ended in circles. She was infatuated with Andras so no matter what he said she would not listen. "Whatever you say, Fely."

Sage noticed the siblings first. "Yo! Whatcha doin' here?"

"Master sent us to help the rune knights apprehend one of the branches of this dark guild. We've already contacted them to come and arrest the ones you beaten," Max said.

"Absurd. We didn't ask for help. The two of us could have handle this situation without difficulties." Andras, being Andras, scorned any unrequested help. Which was always because he never asked for it. He only tolerated being working with Sage because, one, Sage knew to not get in his way, and they had a friendship that stretched for over ten years.

Maximillian shrugged. "Yeah, that's what I told Master Grau, but he insisted. And, well, I'm not going to contradict the master."

Nobody really questioned the master's wishes. Especially Andras. As much as he hated getting help there was nothing he could do.

"We are done here. Once the rune knights come to arrest these vermin we can return to the guild," he said.

* * *

The guild building of Golden Gryphon was massive, easily the largest building in all of Amaryllis town. It was an imposing castle made of stone, meant to awe those that passed by it and those that were thinking of joining. It was meant to say that only those that are good enough can ever hope to view it from within.

"Another job well done you two, as expected."

Everybody in the guild cheered as Andras and Sage had once again stopped another dark guild. It was their tenth successful mission in a row this year. But it surprised no one. Andras and Sage were known as the Twin Beasts of Golden Gryphon. Separated they were strong, but together they were practically unstoppable.

The Earth Take Over mage was giddy from the praise. The Dark Angel had the same aloof look as always.

Praising the two elite mages was their guild master. Grau Neusilber. The thirty-five year old man had an aura of royalty. His thick, white and red robe was made of the finest materials in the land. He was the only member of nobility that was part of a guild. But it was not the fact that he was a blue blood that had given him that position. No. Grau was a man of great magic power. As the number two Wizard Saint he was considered the strongest mage of Fiore. A title earned thanks to his mastery of both the light and the dark.

"You two boys continue to make this guild proud. You have my eternal gratitude," he said.

"Your praises are unnecessary, master. We do our job because the honor of our guild is on the line," Andras said.

"It is precisely because of that that I praise you. You always put the interests of the guild above your own."

"There is nothing my hubby Andras can't accomplish," Fely said. Her cheeks were red with love.

Andras was not amused. "I don't remember ever accepting being your husband. Maybe you should remember I am not interested in nonsense like that."

That answer only served to make her blush even harder. "Kya! How can someone so cold be so hot?"

"You know you need to learn to take compliments better, Andras," Maximillian said. He never liked how easily his sister was dismissed by the angel.

"Hey, Max. Don't tell Andras what he can't and can do. My buddy here doesn't want a froufrou girl." As always, Sage came to the defense of his best bro. Even when he was never asked to do so.

"Do not call me Max, muscle head or I—"

Grau intervened before it got out of hand. "Children, enough. There is no need to fight amongst yourselves. Save your energy for the Grand Magic Games."

"There ain't nothin' to worry about, master. We'll crush the competition like we did last year, and the year before that," Sage said.

"Naturally. The other guilds are beneath us in terms of power," Andras followed.

Grau smiled at his mages' confidence. "While I do not doubt we will win again this year we cannot underestimate the competition. Neptune's Trident is always tough. And I am sure they are still bitter from their defeat last year and have made plans to prevent a repetition." None of them seemed worried in the least. Maybe the next news would. "This year Helios' Blades will be entering."

That raised a few eyebrows. Of all the guilds in Fiore Helios' Blades was second in strength to Golden. Though many considered them to be evenly matched. A claim everyone in Golden did not accept.

The news, instead of shocking them, brought a smile to their face.

"That is an unexpected surprise but a lovely one. We are finally going to have a challenge this year," Maximillian said.

"Glad to see I don't have to remind you of the strength my old master's guild has." At one point Grau had been a pupil of Helios' Blades former master. He knew better than anyone just how strong the guild was. Not to mention it had more members.

"That only means will make an even bigger show when crushing them." That was Andras' way to show his excitement.

Sage pounded his fists together. "Hells fuckin' yeah! I heard they had some tough mages in that guild. It's gonna be fun."

"There's another surprise. It seems a new guild will be joining the games. The independent guild known as the Deadly Sins."

Instead of shock or excitement the guild became quiet. Who were the Deadly Sins? Until today they had never heard of that guild before.

"How did a guild not recognized by the Magic Council managed to achieve that?" Andras asked. He had heard of the guild, at least their most recent exploit. But that's all he knew of them.

"Not sure. Salem Shado, their guild master, was recently rewarded for his guild's victory over the alliance by becoming the number three Wizard Saint," Grau replied. To him a well deserved reward. "I am sure he was surprised by that."

"A Saint title and the honor to participate in the Games? Sounds to me like someone pulled some very high strings," Maximillian said.

That person must have great influence to achieve something like that. Not just with the Magic Council but the kingdom as well since the Magic Games was their idea. Not even Grau had that kind of power.

"Are they strong?" Fely asked.

"Irrelevant. We'll crush them as well," Andras said.

"Do not underestimate them. They might be a small guild but they achieved something spectacular. Neither us nor Helios' have taken on an entire dark guild alliance before." Grau was always in a constant battle against the overconfidence of his guild. But he couldn't blame them.

"In due time we will all experience the strength of this guild. It'll be a new challenge to us alongside the old ones that wish to dethrone us. But nonetheless we will triumph over them." Who did Grau want to fool. He was just as overconfident as his young mages. "Golden Gryphon rest as much can. In two days we will be departing to Crocus for the Grand Magic Games. Let's make sure to once again show the kingdom and our rivals the strength of our guild!"

"YEAH!" Every member shouted in agreement. It didn't matter who they were facing, be it Helios' Blades or this Deadly Sins guild victory was assured.

Not one for celebrations Andras retired back to his dorm.

Sage noticed him. "Where you goin' buddy?"

"Back to my dorm. Can't go to the capital with a dirty blade, now can I?" Nothing was more important to the dark angel than his blade. No one knew why and nobody asked. But they all knew he was protective of it.

"I feel sorry for the suckers that are going to have to feel that blade," Sage said. "We ain't losing this game either man."

"Of course."

Sage extended his arm and presented his fist to Andras. "Come one, man. Like we always do. I promise I won't lose against nobody."

Andras looked at Sage then at his fist. He sighed but still returned the fist bump. "I promise I won't be losing to anyone either. The honor of our guild depends on it."

"Hell yeah, bro. We got this in the bag!"

Golden Gryphon wasn't just about the strength of their magic. They also had strong bonds that linked them all. Despite the bickering they trusted each other. And they trusted the strength of the other as much as their own.

If the Deadly Sins wanted to overcome the number one guild in Fiore they would have to show the same level of confidence on each other or face defeat.


	9. Chapter IX: Rivals

**Chapter IX** : _Rivals_

"Woah, I can see Crocus!" Sora gasped as she peeked her head out of the moving cart. The tips of the tallest buildings of the capital city were in sight. Especially the royal palace of Mercurius.

"Judging by my calculations we should be arriving there in fifteen minutes," Jugo said.

The Sins had travel by train to a town near Crocus, from there they were traveling by cart. Well, not all of them. Exuro had paid for the trip but he had decided to travel in more luxurious comfort. Salem preferred the more humble means of transport, while the rest, not wanting to travel with the greedy man decided to suck it up and travel with their master. But it had been an enjoyable, smooth ride. Nobody complained.

Except Zane.

The whole trip was nothing more than hell for him. Motion sickness, the bane of every Dragon Slayer, had made sure to torment Zane for the past two days. Even a simple, smooth ride through the countryside was enough to make him want to throw up his breakfast.

On the bright side he hadn't spoken much during the trip. No fight challenges or boasts about his strength.

Nama quietly slept, as he had done so during the entire trip.

"I've never been to Crocus before. I've heard it's beautiful," Elaine said.

"It is. There are flowers everywhere," Salem said.

"You've been here before?"

"Once a few years back."

"Master, do you believe we'll encounter the person responsible for inviting us here?" Jugo asked. He, alongside everyone else, wondered who had managed to get their small, independent guild to participate in such an important event.

Even as they approached the city they couldn't believe their luck.

Salem sat down in a corner. Knee bent, arm resting on it. "Probably." He had a good idea of who that person might be but he'd opted not to share until he was a hundred percent certain.

Just as Jugo had predicted they arrived at the city in fifteen minutes. The moment the cart stopped Zane could feel as life returned to him. Without wasting a second he jumped out of the vehicle.

"Land. Sweet, sweet, static land!" He felt tempted to kiss the ground.

"Not even ten seconds and you are already embarrassing us, brat," Elaine said. She looked appalled. The last thing she wanted was to be associated with him.

"Now I know I made the right call to travel separately from you." Sitting in a chair at a restaurant across the street was Exuro. He had a newspaper in hand and a cold drink resting on the table.

"Hope you enjoyed you travel, Exuro," Salem said.

"It was lovely. Quiet and calm. I do love travelling in trains. Most refined way of moving from one place to another," he lifted his glass, cheered at them and took a sip.

"Glad to hear it. Did you reserve a place for us to stay the night?"

"Of course. I do pride myself in my efficiency; waiting for you to show up and make the reservations would have been a waste of time."

"Then why don't you take us. Let's get ourselves comfortable before the games begin," Salem said. He grabbed his and Elaine's bags, well, mostly Elaine's. He had one while she had four.

"Wake up, Onii-chan. We are here and we are heading to the hotel," Sora said. It was a pain trying to wake up her brother.

Naima yawned. "Good. I can sleep...in a bed."

Jugo grabbed his bag and Sora. "Allow me to carry you bag, Sora."

"You guys can go without me. I'll meet you all at the hotel later," Zane said.

"Where are you going?" Salem asked.

Zane gave him a toothy grin. "Just exploring. I can sense lots of strong people, I want to meet the competition."

Salem did not like the sound of that at all. Knowing Zane's need to prove his strength it would not be surprising if he went around Crocus challenging people to a fight. That would not end well. For all of them. "Don't get us and yourself in trouble."

"Relax, just want to look around. I can wait till the games to fight." That was a lie. Every fiber in his being screamed to go and find the toughest opponent he could and fight them, ignoring that call was proving to be hard to ignore. What kept that in check was that he wanted to show his strength in front of everyone. Soon everyone was going to learn the name Zane Darkfang.

"Let's go Atticus."

"Aye!"

The Exceed flew behind his friend, though he had no idea where they were going. Truth be told this was the first time the little cat visited Crocus.

Not Zane's though. What no one knew was that he had been to this place plenty of times before. The last time had been over five years ago, however. He liked the city but only in moderation. In reality he hated places were the nobility lived, and it being the capital, well, they were everywhere.

After walking for a while the Exceed started to wonder where exactly they were going. "Zane-kun, are we looking for any place in particular?"

"Just walking around. It's been a few years since I've been here, just want to see what has changed." Plenty had changed. In had changed so much he didn't recognize parts of it anymore. "Honestly, just want a little breathing space. I don't know if you have noticed but we have been spending a lot of our time with them. Especially after the whole kidnapping deal and the fight with the dark guild alliance Salem is feeling a little suffocating." He understood why their master did it, but Zane was used to just being himself and Atticus. Even after months of being part of the guild he still was not used to being with other people.

Atticus wasn't expecting that answer. "Hmm, is that it? I thought you wanted to go around searching for people to fight."

"Oh yeah, we are definitely doing that. I want to find any worthy challenger for the games."

It was too good to be true. "Found anything yet?"

"Yeah, edgelord, have you found any challengers yet?"

Zane recognized that irritating voice anywhere, any time of the day. "What the hell are you doing here?"

Giving him a smug smile was tall, young man with dark chocolate hair. "That's a stupid question. I'm here cause of the games."

"Terran!" Atticus flew to hug the tall man.

"Yo. Been a while, Atticus, Zane," he said.

"You are here for the games? That means you joined a guild, Terran?" Zane asked.

Terran turned around to give Zane his broad back. He lifted his leather coat and black shirt to reveal his red guild mark. Two swords crossed together, pointing upwards inside a sun.

"Helios' Blades?"

"I joined a year and a half ago. Around a month after the last time I saw you Zane," Terran said.

Zane never expected that from him. He felt the man was too stoic in nature to ever join a guild. Seems he was wrong. Well, not like he knew Terran one hundred percent. Not even close, really. "So, I guess the guild is putting the Earth Dragon Slayer to good work then."

Terran shrugged. "Helios' is my family now. And they are counting on me to win and get them victory. And that's exactly what's gonna happen. I'm going to roll through the competition."

Now it was Zane's turn to smile. "Wrong! I'm going to blast everyone away and win the games for my guild."

"Oh yeah, I was wondering what you were doing here. Forgot you joined a guild. Heard you guys caused the Council quite the headache not that long ago."

"Who cares about them. The only thing I care is fighting strong people and proving I'm stronger. The dark guild lost cause their master was weak."

The Earth Dragon Slayer shook his head. "You are still boasting about being the strongest and proving your strength? Well let me tell you one thing, I'm here and as long as I'm standing you are not going to be the strongest."

That claim didn't sit well with Zane. He walked up to Terran, it looked like he was about to fight him, but to the relief of Atticus, he simply stood an inch away from his earth counterpart. Looking up at him. "I was excited at first, but now I just can't wait to start anymore. Now that you are here I'm now I'll have a proper match. And this time, in front of everyone, in front of our guilds, we'll finally see who is the strongest Dragon Slayer."

Terran couldn't help but smile at the challenge. While he wasn't obsessed with battle or proving he's stronger like Zane, he liked a good brawl and nor is he the type to back off when challenged. "Alright. We'll prove that. But don't go getting all angsty on me when I kick your arse in front of everyone."

Zane could feel his arms shake with excitement. It took every nerve in his body to prevent him from punching Terran. It had been a while since they've fought. And he had to admit no one gave him a challenge like Terran Devastatio. If he couldn't give him that than the Earth Dragon Slayer was not worth being a rival.

Putting his hands behind his head Zane said, "Let's put on a show they'll never forget. Show the people of this kingdom what happens when two Dragon Slayers fight without pulling their punches."

Immediately Terran placed his hand in front of Zane's face. "How about we don't destroy the arena? If we go as crazy as you want we'll level the whole city. Don't want the guild to pay for our recklessness."

The white-haired boy sucked his teeth. "You haven't changed. Still worried about causing damage to your surroundings, huh?"

"Hello, I'm the Earth Dragon Slayer. I can break the ground with a punch if a wanted to."

"That sounds fuckin' cool. Wanna see it." Standing behind both Dragon Slayers was Sage Blackstone.

Terran turned around, even he who stood at six feet had to look up. "Rude. Did your mum not taught you not to snoop around other people's conversation?"

"Never knew my mom," he said matter of fact. "So, are you gonna show me or what?"

"Uh, no?"

"Pussy," Sage said.

"Stop wasting your time with Helios' scum, Sage," Andras said, he stood a few feet behind his earthen friend. "They are not worth our breath."

Scum? Did this dull looking guy just called his guild and mates scum? "Hey, look at yourself in the mirror before calling me or my mates scum. At least they dress better. Not like you who looks like he just came out of an emo convention."

"Hey, dragon bitch boy, don't you dare talk to my buddy like that again unless you want me to pound you into the ground." Sage had turned red. He hated it when anyone disrespected Andras in his presence.

Terran gave a toothy grin. "I insulted Mr. Grim over here, but the one throwing a tantrum is you? What are you his babysitter? He's too old for that."

"Little shit." Sage lifted his fist to pound the arrogant Dragon Slayer to the ground, but the sudden appearance of a Andras in front of him stopped earth mage.

"What did I say, Sage? Leave the Helios' scum be. They are not worth your time," Andras said. The dark angel was not fond of repeating himself.

"Aight, sorry Andras."

Terran chuckled. The guy was big and obviously strong but he sure was tamed. He made a whipping sound. He couldn't help but mess with people easy to tease. But he also knew that to take it too far or else start a fight in a public area, he turned to continue his chat with Zane, at least that guy could take an insult. But when he took a step forward he felt a cold blade hanging above his neck.

"The era of the dragons is long gone, Dragon Slayers. If we face in the arena I'll demonstrate you."

The brunette turned to give a snarky reply to that comment but Andras had already left. "Sheesh, what's with that guy? Can't he take a damn joke? Never thought I would find someone more arrogant than you."

"Shut up, idiot. That guy said the era of the dragons was over and he would show it. I'm not letting that comment slide," Zane side. That guy, he was going to make this Andras guy pay for those words.

"Neither am I but I'm not going to cry about it," Terran said. "I'm going to show him how wrong he is by punching him in his big mouth."

"That's where you are wrong, rock head. The one kicking his butt is going to be me."

"As if, ashes for brain. He challenged me so I'm going to do it and smile as you watch from the stands."

Atticus just flew behind them. Smiling as he watched them argue all the way until they reached their respective lodging areas. It had been a long time since he saw his friend smile so much.

He, just like the Dragon Slayers, couldn't wait for the games to begin.

* * *

The past few chapters have been rather short. The next ones will be longer and have more action. I hope you are all ready for the Grand Magic Games arc!


	10. Chapter X: Let the Games Begin

**Chapter X** : _Let the Games Begin_

"Ladies and gentleman! The day you have all been eagerly waiting for has arrived!" The commentator shouted through his microphone to a stadium filled with thousands of people.

The spectators answered the man's excitement with a thunderous roar. There wasn't a corner of the city that was safe from their screams. The rows were filled not just with ecstatic crows but with flags, banners with the names of guilds written on them, and with the occasional picture of a favorite participant. It was no exaggeration to say Golden Gryphon had that won.

Domus Flau was filled to the brim with tens of thousands of spectators. Viewing from the top, from their own balconies, where the guild masters, the mages that came to watch, and the participating mages that were in reserve.

For the Deadly Sins guild it meant only Salem, Exuro and Atticus were occupying the balcony.

"Looks like the participants are about to go out and parade around the stadium. You sure you didn't want to be part of it?" Salem asked.

Exuro scoffed. "Me, part of this spectacle for the masses? No. Let the children feel important." As if he would go parading just to make people feel entertained.

"In a few moments we'll introduce all of the participating guilds folks," Maxton the commentator said. "But first let's have a few words from our guests that will be accompanying us throughout the games."

Sitting next to Maxton is the chief editor of Sorcerer Magazine Joey-Joey. "Thank you Maxton. Let me just say I'm excited, excited, excited to be here! You have no idea how long I've been waiting to sit here, view the games and share my thoughts to the eager public!" Joey-Joey was a man that hardly knew how to control his eagerness. "I will make sure to eat every small detail of the events to write the best, most fantastic, jaw dropping, eye popping, brain melting articles the readers have ever read!"

Maxton gave a forced laughter. This guy had way too much energy. "That is great. I am sure your readers cannot wait. Now how about some words from the former guild master of Helios' Blades, Kagura."

Next to Joey-Joey, in the furthest sit, sat an even younger man, not older than eighteen. A face free of any facial hair. He looked more like a tween than an adult. "Thank you for allowing me to be here, Maxton. It is a great honour."

"How could we not invite the man that has become this kingdom's beloved prince trusted friend." He conveniently omitted the fact that the prince was this year's main patron for the games. "As a former guild master you have more experience with mages and guilds than any of us. Do you have anything to say about the participating mages? Maybe an idea of who will dominate."

Kagura pondered for a second. "Well, I am the former master of Helios' Blade, so I know better than anyone how strong they are. All promising mages with bright futures ahead. But that could be interpreted as bias," he said. "But, I must admit the mages of Golden Gryphon are truly a sight to behold. They will be a difficult challenge. And I see them as the main focus of every guild."

"I see. Well, according to polls, Golden Gryphon and Helios' Blades are considered the most popular and the most likely to reach the final and—"

"However, there is one guild that cannot be overlooked. The new guild known as the Deadly Sins."

Maxton looked like he didn't believe what Kagura had said. He looked through his notes to find out more about this guild. "Ah yes, they were recently in the spotlight for defeating a dark guild alliance."

Kagura smiled. "I know they are relatively unknown, and it is their first time in the games, but it will be worth it to keep an eye on them."

"O-of course. Will make sure to keep that in mind," Maxton said. "Anyways. Ladies and gentlemen. The time has arrived for the guilds to make their entrance!"

"Awesome! Awesome! Awesome!" Joey-Joey screamed at the top of his lungs. He was probably more excited than any member of the audience.

"This years the teams will enter at random. In first is Silent Phantom!"

People cheered as 5 shrouded figures entered the stadium. Only their faces were distinguished, three guys and two girls. On the back of their black shrouds was their guild mark. Half an opera mask.

"Next is Dawn Fang!"

Dawn Fang was the second smallest guild, but they had earned the reputation for being a guild that focused primarily in helping people during catastrophes, like raids or natural disasters. In matching orange uniforms came in an old man, two young men and two girls in their late teens. The front of their uniforms was their guild mark, a rising sun with a slash going through it.

"This is a guild that knows how to win hears. That is, Red Hearts!"

This time it was the men that cheered, well, most like howling and whistling. As Red Hearts was an all female guild.

Not only were all the girls pretty they also dressed in style. But that shouldn't be a surprise, as the guild's five elite were famous for modeling for Sorcerer Magazine. Their mark is a big heart with two smaller hearts on the sides.

"Those are my girls!" Joey-Joey said. "Kick ass girls!"

"This next guild is not known for their beauty but for their brawn. Welcome Bronze Scales!"

Just like Red Hearts, Bronze Scales was an exclusive guild, an all male guild. Anyone could distinguish them thanks to their big guild mark, a shield with a scale pattern on it.

"Now this next guild is one we all know well. They are last year's front runners. Welcome Leviathan Breach!"

Now the roars from the audience became louder. The guild's battle against Golden Gryphon for the championship title had become legendary. It was a rematch every spectator was impatiently waiting for. Fans waved banners that had the guild's mark on, the head of a sea snake with its mouth open.

"Next is a guild that is making their first ever appearance. It is a young one, but it has already made a name for itself. Welcome the Deadly Sins guild!"

Zane, Elaine, Jugo, Nama and Sora entered the arena. Each wearing whatever they wanted, but they made sure to display their guild marks with pride.

But their guild didn't receive the same level of uproar as the others had. Most fans had only recently heard of their name. And while their victory was impressive, it was only one exploit compared to what the other guilds could show.

Out of respect the people applauded them, some even cheered, but there were no flags or banners. Most fans asked the person next to them if they recognized any of guild mages. With an expected answer of no.

"Claps of pity," Exuro said.

"That shouldn't be a surprise. I spent so much time trying to keep the guild secluded and this is the result," Salem said. "But there is nothing to worry. Right?"

"Aye!" Atticus had decided to make Salem's head his seat for the day since Zane was down there. "If I know Zane he will make sure everyone knows his name and the guild by the end of the day."

The Sin of Greed rolled his eyes. "Oh goody, he's going to make a scene in front of thousands. Magnificent."

And that is exactly the thought running through the Dragon Slayer's mind. He took in a deep breath, and—

"People, give your next big welcome to Helios' Blades!"

The entire stadium was drowned with a sea of shouts, claps, whistling and praises as the beloved guild enter the arena. The guild had won the hearts and minds of the kingdom due to being a guild that focused more on protecting and fighting for others than fighting for its own glory.

Unlike with the Sins everyone knew the names of Helios' five participants.

"Come on Lance, freeze their asses!" One shouted.

"I can't wait to see the Hiro the Demon in action." A girl said.

Terran was behind them. When he looked at Zane he gave him a smug smile. He knew deep inside Zane was seething in anger that he and his guild were well known, while nobody seemed to care much for them. Not that he personally cared for the attention, or that he mocked the Sin's lack of fame, far from it. He just found it amusing to see the zealous proud Dragon Slayer being left in the dark.

He always found Zane's excessive and selfish pride to be annoying.

"Zane-kun looks so ready to rip Terran in half," Atticus said.

"Terran?" Neither Salem nor Exuro knew who that was.

"The Earth Dragon Slayer from Helios' Blades. He and Zane have an intense rivalry."

"Oh, I can already imagine the cost of damages the arena will receive if those two were to fight," Exuro said. One Dragon Slayer fighting was bad, but two? Now that would be the end of the arena.

"Ladies and gentlemen. We still have one more guild. Last, but definitely not least, is the guild that won the games last year. Champions two years in a row! Please welcome Gooooolden Gryyyyphon!"

The excitement in the shouts of every man, woman and child was overwhelming. There wasn't a corner in Crocus that was outside of the range of their cheering as Golden Gryphon came into the stadium.

Posters with the faces of the guild's most famous mages were on display. Flags with the mark of a gryphon of golden color were waved in their hundreds. Most people simply went crazy. Girl blushed as the buff Sage waved at them. While Fely received all sorts of compliments. Which she gracefully took.

"Holy shit, I think there are more people this year than last," Sage said.

"I'm so excited that I think my heart is going to burst from my chest." Jumping due to excessive energy was the guild's Thunder Devil Slayer, Rayden Bolt. The blond teenager was known for his unmatched hyperactivity and energy. He didn't participate in the last two games, so his excitement was expected. "There are so many strong looking people here. This is gonna be so much fun."

"We must give it our all," Maximilian said.

"Of course, big brother. What kind of Golden Gryphon mages would we be if we didn't?" Fely asked. She had a white and pink parasol with her.

Both Zane and Terran directed their looks at the pair of siblings. They are Dragon Slayers?

"What? Four Dragon Slayers in one stadium?" Even for a genius like Exuro this was unexpected.

"Zane is going to go crazy with so many Dragon Slayer rivals here," Atticus gulped.

"You are wrong. There is another one," Salem said. "Look at the guy from Leviathan. He has been staring at Zane for a while now. He's a Dragon Slayer too."

"Five Dragon Slayers!" Both Exuro and Atticus said.

The amount of collateral damage five Dragon Slayers could cause was too much even for the Sin of Greed to calculate. This was going to be a lot more messy than previously thought.

"Sup!" Sage said to the audience, waving at them.

Same with the others, they waved at the audience, giving them the attention they wanted. Except for Andras, he didn't care for entertaining the fans. He didn't want to be a spectacle for them. The only thing in his mind was winning and giving his guild the glory it deserved.

Zane walked up to the middle of the arena and shouted at the top of his lungs. "I am Zane Darkfang. The Deadly Sins' Dark Flame Dragon Slayer. And Fiore's strongest Dragon Slayer." He looked at each and everyone of the competing guild's Dragon Slayers. "You guys better remember my name. Because by the end of the games you'll see who stands at the top."

Terran rolled his eyes. It's not like he didn't expect him to boast like that. But he would be lying if he said he didn't want to prove his strength either. He also wanted to make sure the guild got the recognition it deserved. And he wanted badly to kick Zane's ass in front of everyone. That'll probably bring him down a couple of notches.

"Did you hear that boy, Fely? He has the audacity to shout he will beat us. Unacceptable," Maximillian said.

Fely used her parasol to cover her face for a moment. "What a rude boy. And the way he dresses, he looks like a ruffian. He better stay away from me."

Andras looked at him with his usual aloof look. Yet inside of his mind he was already annoyed by him. He hated those that boast about their strengths while being nothing more than little insects. This kid had a mouth too big for his own good.

"Zane, can you stop embarrassing us?" Elaine asked. She shook her head. They've only been standing in the arena for a few minutes and the brat was already making a scene.

"I would be lying if I said Mr. Darkfang's enthusiasm wasn't contagious," Jugo said. "This is the first time our guild is made public to the world. I think it'll be for the best if we demonstrate our adversaries and the fans that we are serious about winning this."

"Just because we are a small guild. Just because we are an independent guild, doesn't mean our pride is small. It burns as strong. And we'll show them just how much!" Zane said. He was here to win it all. "We'll show them just how strong a guild of misfits really is."

The rest of the guild was quiet. It surprised them to hear encouraging words from him. They were so used to hearing him talk about himself and his strength, this felt odd. But they had to admit they liked it.

Zane noticed the way they were looking at him. "What? I'm part of this guild too. I know I'm new at this but I still want to see it recognized and respected by others." He looked at the balcony where Salem was. "We owe it to him."

"Well, when you put it like that, then yes. We owe it to my darling," Elaine said.

"Ladies and gentlemen. Now that you have seen the young and eager faces of your participants it is time we start the games!" Maxton screamed into the microphone. "As the patron of this year's games Fiore's crown prince gets to decide what the opening challenge be. And speaking on his behalf is the former master of Helios' Blades and the current ninth Wizard Saint, Kagura!"

Kagura took his mic and spoke to the participants. "Before I state the challenge I want to first congratulate you for reaching this point. You eight guilds are here because you were selected as the kingdom's strongest, most promising. All of your battles, all of your deeds for the kingdom, this is the result for all of that. You are already winners in the eyes of the kingdom."

The fans applauded Kagura's words.

"I know you didn't come here to hear me speak. So I'll move on. The challenge is a test of endurance and stamina. It is a race across the capital city," he said. With a snap of his fingers 4 giants maps appeared above the stadium, right in the middle. Each map was of Crocus. Highlighted was the race track that zig-zagged across the city. "The stadium is both the start and finish line. The first to return will win four points for their guild. Second place three. Third place two. Fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh will win one point. Eight place wins nothing."

"This is so exciting! Just imagining them running and fighting for those four points is hyping me," Joey-Joey said. He was rocking on his chair. Anymore excitement and he would fall from it.

"You will get to choose who participates in this race," Kagura said.

Immediately all of the guilds began to discuss between each other who should go and why. With some minor arguments popping here and there.

Kagura cleared his throat. "I am not done. There are a few rules, however. You are allowed to use magic to either stop or slow down your opponent. But fatal injuries are forbidden. You can use your magic to increase your speed. However, vehicles, flying or travelling underground is also forbidden."

Golden Gryphon's blonde Devil Slayer took a stepforward. "I'm taking this first challenge. I am the fastest member."

"Naturally. Besides, this kind of physical activities doesn't suit me," Maximillian said.

Andras was quiet. He was thinking about the rules. "He said this is a test of endurance and stamina. But it is also a test of skills and patience."

Sage looked lost. "I'm sure it's about using your legs, buddy."

"It's is more than that. He said we could stop or slow down our opponents. But doing that will inevitably slow you down as well. Choosing the right spell that won't injure them, choosing the right target, and making sure the spell hits said target all take time. In a race even a few seconds of slow down can mean the difference between first and second place."

Sage and Rayden's brains were making smoke. Maximilian and Fely nodded in agreement. "So that means we shouldn't waste time on the others, then."

"Correct. Rayden, focus your magic to race. That is all. I doubt the other guilds have someone as fast as you. But if it were to happen attack only when they are next to you. Not behind. Let them see your back without interruption," Andras said.

"Yes sir!" Rayden gave him a military salute. "I'll do what you and that big angel brain of yours said."

"Well I'm out," Terran said as he started to walk back to the rest of the guild in the balcony. "I'm not fast, and since we can't go underground my magic is pretty useless."

"Then I'll do it." Helios' Blades Ice Make mage said. Of all the participating members of the guild, the young man with light black hair had been in the guild the longest.

"You sure, Lance?" Short boy Hiro the demon asked.

"I'm a decent runner. But when I run on an ice path no one can beat me. I can win this," Lance Frigus said.

The rest of the group nodded in agreement. They would rest their changes of victory on their dependable ice friend.

While the Sins were making their plans Zane stared at Terran's group. When the Earth Dragon Slayer started to walk away he felt disappointed. "I'm skipping this battle," he said. His decision shocked the rest of the group. "Don't feel like participating in this one. And I'm not the fastest here. You should do it, Sora."

They all looked at each other in silence, eyes wide in surprise. Was this really Zane? Missing the chance to prove himself and admitting he wasn't the best at something? The only explanation is that the real Zane had been kidnapped and replaced with a doppleganger than was doing a terrible job at impersonating him.

Zane didn't understand why they were looking at him as if he had suddenly grown horns. "What? I don't want to race. I want to fight! I want to kick butt in front of the crown and show how strong I am." Oh, the real Zane was there all along. "Look, yes, I want fight, but I also want the guild to win. And I'm not a fast runner. Sora in her Take Over is."

Jugo pushed back his eyeglasses. "That is correct. Miss Sora is faster than all of us by a considerable margin. If we want any hope of success then she must participate in this one."

"What do you say, Sora?" Elaine asked.

The little girl pondered for a few moments. She would be lying if she said she wasn't nervous. Truth be told she did not expect to participate in the opening game. She always expected Zane or Elaine to do that, being the strongest members of the guild. But their eyes said they trusted her to handle this. "Yeah, I'll do this and win this for us!" She would not disappoint that trust.

Kagura cleared his throat again to get the attention of everyone in the arena. "Now, if you have selected someone to participate please walk to the main gate of the arena. Stand in the white line drawn on the ground. The rest of you please return to your guild masters."

It took only a few moments for the arena to be cleared of all but the eight participating members. They all stood behind the white line. Gryphon's Rayden, Helios' Lance, the Sins' Sora, Leviathan's Dacia and the rest. All of their young faces were full of determination and excitement. Each and everyone of them made last second mental preparations about what to do. Quickly taking a glance at the people to their left and right.

"Remember the rule. No harming. No flying or going underground," Kagura reminded them. "Now then. Enough waiting. On my mark you will start. Get Ready. Set. Race on!"

* * *

The Republic of Iceberg, a large nation that borders the slave-infested nation of Bosco. True to its name the republic was a land were snow always fell down upon its inhabitants. A thick blanket of white covered the ground as far as the eyes could see. The nation was almost surrounded in every direction by chains of snow-covered mountains.

At any other time this would be a magnificent place to visit. At any other time.

The once pristine, pure white fields were soaked in red. Hundreds of soldiers were impaled with spikes made of ice. The clean ice had turned red from all the blood. What at one point been a popular travel destination had become a slaughterhouse.

Responsible for this carnage sat down in a little block of rock and snow. She sat with her work behind her. She ignored it. She was simply waiting for something or someone. When she heard the sound of hooves and wheels rolling over the hard surface she stood up.

A large, white carriage decorated fancily stopped nearby. Out walked a middle aged man dressed in clothing of nobility, white suit and pants, a heavy, furry coat decorated with military medals. The man walked with grace and discipline. He seemed unbothered by the horrors of the battlefield. "How is it possible that such a beautiful woman like you can cause such a massacre?" He asked. Behind him stood two heavily armored guards, armed to the teeth with a large, heavy halberd and a thick shield.

"I am strong and these guys were weak. Simple like that," she said. Her voice was cold, free of most emotions except arrogance. "Did you just come here to admire my work, general?"

The general scoffed. "Hardly. My country is in the midst of a civil war. I am trying everything within my power to end it and unify it under my command. But tell me, do you think the people will accept me as their leader when they find out about this butchering?"

"You paid me to destroy the enemy army," she said. Dismissive of his worries.

"I paid you to defeat my enemies. Not to massacre them!" The general was losing his cool. This wasn't the first time he's had this conversation. "The more the other factions see this the more they will resist. They see me as a bloodthirsty tyrant."

The woman yawned. She returned to her seat, looking bored from finishing a mundane chore. "What do you want from me?"

"To do as I say! I pay you large amounts of money. And I expect the results I paid for. This mindless butchering must stop!" The general's face began to turn red. It was like talking to a child. But just before he continued to scold her he felt a large presence behind him. A shadow covered him like a blanket of dread. He turned to see a mountain of a man.

"You ever scream at her like that again, and I'll make sure it is your last." The newcomer towered over the general by over a foot. His young face was furious. Like it could melt the general for screaming at his girlfriend.

"I pay you both for your services. Which makes me your boss—" The general felt a heavy hand on his shoulder. Followed by a pressure that started to force him to his knees. And no matter how much he resisted he was forced down. He looked up to see the tall, shirtless man wasn't even exerting himself.

"Tell me," the young man said, "are you feeling like a boss right now? Do you feel in charge?"

The old man didn't know how to answer. He was too afraid. He had seen war for many years. Been in many battles, but never had he felt so scared and powerless before. This man could break him if he wanted to.

"Urial, you big oaf. If you break him then he won't be able to pay us what he owes us," she said. "Stop it."

Like a well trained dog Urial listened. "Sorry, Yuki, just pisses me off when guys like this shitface scream at you."

Yuki walked up to him, standing next to him she looked small and frail when compared to her towering, muscular overprotective boyfriend. "I can very well take care of myself, Urial." She caressed his thick arm. "Just calm down, Urial. Let the man speak. What do you want now?"

The general stood up with the help of his guards. "There is an enemy base east of here, half a day's away. Up in the mountains. Destroy it and the war will be over. Then you will get your money." With that said he returned to his vehicle. He ordered the driver to move and return to their base. He hated any interactions with those two. The faster he could get away the better.

"What an asshole," Urial said. He was calm now. Feeling her small, delicate cold hand on his burning skin was soothing. He turned, grabbed her by her waist and pulled her in closer. "What's next?" He asked as he played with her long, snow white hair.

Yuki smiled as he pulled her to him. The only time she smiled was when she was with him. "Well, once we are done here we should move to another place and restart our games. I'm already bored of playing soldier with a bunch of silly, old men."

"Aight. Where does my ice queen want to go next?"

Yuki turned her gaze west. "I think it is about time we reunited with our two comrades and start our plan. When we are done here let's head to Fiore."

* * *

 _Damn, it has been almost to months since I uploaded a chapter. Been really busy with college and work. And a little lazy too :P._

 _Also, I want to thank my friend NewPrussia for letting me borrow her awesome character Yuki._


	11. Grand Magic Games, Part 1

**Chapter XI** : _Grand Magic Games, Part 1_

The first trial of the games had been on for over ten minutes, but it wasn't even halfway done. All the participants had quickly learned it wasn't a simple race around the capital, as the path they had to follow had many twists and turns that increased both the length of the path and its difficulty. And many of the mages spent as much time trying to slow the opponents down as they did running. It only served to add to the chaos, already large parts of the track and many buildings had been damaged from the fight. They had been told any damage to the city would be repaired, so they could fight and race to their heart's content.

One who had decided to listen to advice given to him, Golden Gryphon's Rayden had a comfortable lead over everyone. The Devil Slayer ran like a flash of purple lightning; the moment the race had begun Rayden had left everyone eating his dust. He stopped, then turned around to see just how far ahead he was. "Sweet!" Rayden looked at the lacrima camera that had been following him, well, that had tried to keep up with him, and gave a cocky smile. "Piece of cake."

Without wasting another second the Devil Slayer continued to race on.

Behind him, struggling for second place were Helios' Blades Lance and Dawn Fang's Miranda. The young, red haired girl rode a unicorn adorned with bright, silver and golden armor, and with long, copper hair. Right next to her was Lance, skating on an ice path he was constantly extending using his Ice Make magic. Both of them tried to keep ahead of the other but when one got the lead it only lasted for a few seconds.

"Now that is a race, ladies and gentlemen. Look at those two go at it, giving it everything they have. Magnificent!" Maxton, the commentator said to the public to arouse them.

"This. Is. Epic!" Joey-Joey shouted. Throughout the entire race he had done nothing but scream in excitement. Yet somehow his throat sounded fine.

"I have been wondering, Master Kagura, if Miss Miranda isn't technically violating the rules since she is not the one running," Maxton said.

"Lady Miranda is a Celestial Spirit mage, she is simply using her magic, as allowed in the rules. Nor would I dare to treat a Celestial Spirit as some sort of transportation vehicle," Kagura replied.

Maxton gulped. "O-Of course, Master Kagura." He felt silly saying that. Fortunately, the moment passed fast because of what was happening on the lacrima screens. "What is this? Someone is catching up to Lance and Miranda. Yes, it's… it's… A cat?"

"That's not a cat, you moron. That our fast Leopard Take Over loli," Zane said with a smirk. As much as he hated to admit it, without Atticus flying him around he was at a disadvantage in speed.

For this event the normally sleeping Nama was wide awake. He needed to see his sister and let her know he was cheering her on. There was no time to be lazy here.

Sora, in her Snow Leopard form, had her eyes locked on her front. That was the only thing that mattered at the moment. Though it was hard to ignore the lacrima cameras that flew around all participants. But she had to try, because she knew her teammates were looking. No way would she disappoint them now.

"That's it. Cheer me on, people. About time Sora the Snow Leopard got some love." she said. Oh, did getting the attention from the crowd made her feel like the most important being alive.

Lance and Miranda both turned their heads to see Sora catching up to them. She was just a few feet away and would surpass them at any given moment. But Lance would have none of that. He jumped, spun 180 degrees to face them and then slammed his hand on the floor when he landed. "Ice Make: Floor!" In an instant his magic froze the race track and turned it into a slippery surface. Without saying anything else he turned around and continue on.

Miranda's Celestial Spirit started to slip as its hooves couldn't balance themselves on the ice. It felt to its side, Miranda going down with it. Her foot became trapped under the spirit. "Crap! Come on Un, stand up!" The unicorn couldn't, it was too heavy for the ice. When the mage decided to return the spirit back to the Spirit Realm she saw Sora running ahead of her. "Hey, how can you still run in this ice?!"

Sora stopped to face her. "This Take Over is the spirit of the snow leopard. They live in the frozen, icy mountains. For me this icy floor is just a regular walk."

"Sora, you numbskull what are you doing? Stop talking and race!" To everyone's shock Nama shouted at her.

When the Sin of Envy heard her brother's voice she snapped out of it and focused once again on the race. "I hope to see you back at the stadium, girl of Dawn's Fang!"

Miranda returned her spirit back to the Spirit World. She stood up, with some difficulties due to the slippery floor, and cursed at the high heavens. "Damn you, Helios' Blades!"

Lance was already far too in front to be able to hear the shouts of anger coming from the Celestial Spirit mage. Not like hearing them would make him rethink his actions. He was in it to win it. He wanted Helios to get the recognition it deserved as the strongest guild in the kingdom. And he wanted to put the arrogant jerks of Golden Gryphon in their place.

He could feel it. The finish line wasn't so far. He could make it. He would make it.

"Get out of the way! I'm coming through!"

Lance turned around to see an oversized, white cat coming at him. No, not at him, coming to surpass him and leave him behind. "No way am I letting you over take me," he said. Lance poured his heart and soul into his magic, making the ice more slippery so he could run faster. Good thing he had exchanged his usual fur boots for tennis shoes. The wind hitting his pale face made the hoodie of his white jacket flap around.

But Sora would not let him outrun her. She pushed her strong, feline legs to their limit, running faster, leaping longer. She felt if she overtook him she could win.

That is, until…

"Ladies and gentlemen, Rayden Bolt from Golden Gryphon has reached the finishing line and won an overwhelming victory!" Maxton shouted to the mic, getting a reply of excited shouts and cheers from the crowd. "Rayden has left every single contestant far behind. Because of his victory he has earned Golden Gryphon four points, giving them an early lead over the rest."

Lance and Sora both slowed down, their excitement had diminished somewhat. They were running to win first place but that guy had left them behind. Hell, neither one of them could remember if they actually saw his back. However, both soon realized they still could win major points; second place gave them three, it was still a big lead for the guild that won them.

Realizing that Lance went on the offensive. He threw balls of ice at Sora's feet, trying to freeze her paws to slow her down enough. Sora jumped left and right trying her best to dodge them.

"Hey, quit it!" She said.

"Did you forget what Kagura said? We can battle our opponents as long as we don't seriously injure them. I just want to freeze your paws. Consider yourself lucky," Lance replied while continuing his frozen barrage.

Sora too went on the offensive. After dodging a few more attacks she focused some magic on her mouth, forming a small orb. She released it, launching the orb at his feet to make him slip.

But on the field of ice Lance was untouchable. He wasn't running at this point, but skating. He danced over the ice, dodging Sora's blasts with grace and elegance. The Ice Mage jumped and flipped mid air, landing back on his feet without the smallest sign that he was going to slip.

"Damn, the guy is light on his feet. Like a ballerina," Terran said. Being newer to the guild compared to the rest, he didn't know as much about a veteran like Lance.

"Just because Lance's good on his feel doesn't mean he's a ballerina. You meathead," Tsuki, Helios Dark Magic user and Lance's childhood friend said. The black-haired girl tended to be protective of her friend. Though she saw him more like a little brother.

"Wow, he's as good an Ice Mage as you, Elaine," Zane said.

The Ice God Slayer didn't reply, in fact, she was in a trance. The way the Helios mage moved over the ice was spectacular. He was like a snow prince. Beautiful and fine. But alas, he was a rival, and as handsome as he was he still on the boyish side compared to Salem.

The one that was no amused at all was Sora. Thanks to the lacrima vision she could hear all the cheers Lance received from the public. That is not at all what she wanted to hear. It was supposed to be her time to shine! She was supposed to be getting all of the attention from the public. And this pompous guy was taking it all away from her.

But once she reached the finish line before him, then everyone would return to cheering for her. Salem would praise her. "That'll make Elaine jealou–Ah… Oof!" Her thoughts had distracted her from a piece of ice right in front of her path. It made her trip, falling on her face.

Lance gave off a little chuckle before proceeding onwards. He had this in the bag. No need to worry about anything.

Nama imprinted his hand on his forehead. "That idiot was probably lost thinking about something stupid."

"You know, I understand the stereotype about the clumsy little girl, but could she have picked a worse time for that," Exuro said. That's why he remained in the balcony, to avoid making a fool out of himself in these games. He never liked the spectacle, though he surely enjoyed winning the bets.

Zane clenched his teeth. "Damn it, you klutz! Get up and start running or else I'll finish this myself."

Oh crap, that's the last thing she wanted. She returned back to her feet, all four of them, and returned back to the race, leaping and running as fast as possible. If she lost Zane would not stop reminding her. Especially when he was the one that offered the idea of she running. That was a strong motivation.

After a few more seconds, which felt like hours, the finish line became noticeable. Her smile return, but not for long. She looked down to see the trail of ice reached all the way into the arena.

"Lance Frigus of Helios' Blades has reached second place!" Maxton shouted to the mic. "That is three points for the guild."

Sora felt her world crumble. She failed. The one thing she sought to do, beat the ice guy and earn her small guild a few points, and yet she couldn't do even that.

"What the hell is that stupid cat-girl doing? Why is she slowing down when she's so close to the finish line?!" Zane was ready to fulfill his threat of jumping into the arena and finishing the race himself.

"Oh, what is this? Sora, the girl from the independent guild, Deadly Sins, has suddenly come to a stop. Has she lost the will to go on?" Maxton asked.

One simple race. A few points. That's all she needed to show everyone the strength of her guild, and yet all day the young Sin girl had done nothing but see everyone's back. No, not just this day. That was the only thing she saw. The backs of her more powerful teammates. Zane or Elaine would have definitely been able to finish this without doubting themselves.

Kagura stared at her from above. _I see. So that is your_ true _sin of envy._

Salem, who up to this point had been quiet, walked up close to the balcony's edge. "It's okay, Sora. You tried your best. Don't let failure get to you and make you stop. Show everyone in this arena how strong and determined you are," he said. "Show the remainder of the guilds your back."

His words reached her. Despite the screams and cheers that drowned everything, her ears were able to take in her master's words. Sora was determined. She put all of her strength into her rear legs, and with one movement made a long leap that reached the finish line.

"Look at that, everyone. It is as if her doubts have vanished completely! That final leap has earned her and her guild two points!"

All of her fellow Sins gave sighs of relief. Two points was not that bad. It meant they were in third place. A simple matter of making it up during the other events.

"Oh oh! Here come the rest of the participants! In fourth place is Miranda from Dawn Fang! Trailing behind her is Kaito from Leviathan Breach!" Maxton said. Even though the rest of the participants had practically lost and were getting just one point he still shouted their names with the same enthusiasm. "In sixth place is the charming and lovely Carla from Red Hearts. And just behind her are Mikel from Bronze Scale and Zek from Silent Phantom. Unfortunately for Zek and his guild since he is in last place they get zero points."

When all the participants were back they were allowed to return to their guilds. Many of them were received with cheers and congratulations, but some not so much.

The master of Leviathan Breach, a tall, wide shoulder man looked down on Kaito. The young man was on his knees, staring at the ground, trembling. He gulped as he knew he was going to pay for only earning one point.

"How exactly does a member of Leviathan Breach, one of the strongest guilds in Fiore, reach fifth place?" Guild master Orka said as he stroked his goatee. His voice was deep and rough, it sent shivers down the spine of anyone that he talked down to. The man known as the Living Tsunami, and the 5th strongest Wizard Saint, was a terrifying sight.

"I-I… Sorry master…" Kaito felt something heavy and cold on his head. It was the master's boot.

"You are sorry?" Orka stomped the boy's head onto the ground. "Sorry is a word the weak use! And you are one of them. A weakling that brought shame onto our guild. I have no use for you. You will not participate in the Games anymore. Understood?"

Kaito had to hold back tears, that would only make things worse. "Yes, Master Orka."

"Good. At least you are good for something. Now get out of my sight!" The man said, he crossed his arms, his thick-leather gloves tapping against his shoulder. "Levy, Lucian, to me, now!"

Two young men walked forward, they stood straight, almost like soldiers. Levy was the taller of the two, his navy blue hair similar to the guild master. Lucian had an ice blue hair, and wore a cocky smirk.

"You two are the strongest mages in the guild. And such you will have to make up for the failures of the weaklings we have," Orka said. He placed a hand on Levy. "Especially you, my son. You will show everyone, especially those fools of Golden, the fruits of your training. I know you won't disappoint."

"Don't worry, father, I won't," Levy replied.

"You can count on me as well, master. I'll show them all the strength of our guild," Lucian said.

Orka smiled. He was proud of those two boys. They were the guild's secret weapons to counter the other elite mages of the other guilds. Lucian had a very special role to fulfill as Leviathan's Dragon Slayer. "Now then, we'll just have to wait for the next round. Depending on what it is I might send someone else. No need to reveal our secret weapons so soon."

When Sora reached her friends Elaine and Hugo hugged her. "You were amazing, Sora! The way you outran a horse, that was amazing."

"Good...job...little sis… I knew you… could make it," Nama said in between fighting to stay awake and a few yawns.

Salem walked up to her and patted her small head. "Good job, Envy. I am proud of the way you pulled through and managed to overcome your doubts."

The young girl blushed. To be getting all of this attention gave her a feeling of high. She had earned it all. Maybe getting third place wasn't all that bad after all. "Thanks everyone. I knew I had to do something. I'm not as strong as some of you, so it was the least I could do."

"It was a great display that showed the other guilds we are not to be underestimated, but we are not winning yet," Zane said. He knew none of the other Sins would be happy that he ruined the mood. "Hey, last time I checked third place isn't winning. And we are doing this to win."

"Hey, Zane, give her a break, she tried her best," Elaine said.

"I agree with the dragon brat," Exuro said, words that without a doubt were hard to express. "If our best can give us third place then we might as well forfeit the games. I did not come here to make a fool out of me."

Elaine tightened a fist. "Look you old son of a—"

"Enough, guys. Fighting amongst ourselves will not help us," Salem said. "What Greed is saying is the truth. While Sora's efforts gave us a great lead over most of the guilds we are still losing. And we just saw how easily the Devil Slayer of Golden Gryphon won the match. We need to match their efforts if we want to win."

Zane smiled. "Damn right! Next match I'll be participating and I'll win us all the points!"

"Speaking of, it seems they are ready to announce the next contest."

Maxton cleared his throat before shouting to the mic. "Ladies and gentlemen, we hope the race match has not satisfied your crave for more games. Because we are ready to start the next one, a combat version of tag." He stopped to let the excited masses cheer. "The rules are simple, you have five minutes to land a single hit against your opponent. If you land one in less than a minute you get five points. For every minute that passes you will earn one less point. If no one gets hit by the time the timer ends both players get one point."

Hugo stroked his chin. "I see, this is just like the race. It is not about combat, at least not completely. It is about knowing how to evade the enemy and knowing when to, and when not to, strike at the opponent," he said. "Fascinating. The contests of the Games are not as clear cut as they sound."

"Well, at least that makes it more interesting and less predictable," Exuro said.

Kagura stood up next to talk and explain how the participants would be chosen. "Now, if all of you would pay attention to the center of the arena," he snapped his fingers and a massive hat appeared out of nowhere. "Inside of that hat are the names of every participating member. Two names will be chosen at random. And now to pick the names."

The inside of the hat started to shine as it started to select names at random. When the names were chosen they were written in mid air by light magic. "The Deadly Sin's Hugo Granice will be confronting Golden Gryphon's Andras Naphriel."

Hugo was surprised, he had not expected to be participating so early. In reality he would have much preferred to continue to observe the battles so he could see the magic of every enemy, and possibly come up with countermeasures. Still, this was essentially a war, and things usually never go according to plan during a war. "Wish me luck everyone."

Zane groaned under his breath. He wanted to do some fighting so bad. "Break a leg, man." Maybe it was for the best. Just punching his opponent once would be too boring.

Back in Golden Gryphon, just like Hugo, no one had expected Andras would participate so soon. He was their strongest member, so he was expected to fight at later, more important stages.

"Alright, buddy, go and kick that guy's ass!" Sage said. "Win this shit for us."

"Of course, Sage." That's all Andras said before going downstairs into the arena.

"I feel sorry for that Sin guy, he won't last a minute," Fely said.

"Now now Fely, feeling sorry for our opponents is a show of disrespect. We must not feel sorry for them or look down on them. We must treat them as equals," the guild master said. He meant what he said. Grau wanted his young mages to treat their opponents with respect, because he wanted them to be respected by them. But that was easier said than done; the arrogance of youth.

Both Hugo and Andras reached the stage. A magic timer of five minutes floated way above their heads.

The Sin of Gluttony looked nervous. Just a quick look at Andras' aloof countenance was enough to tell the Sin that this man was strong, probably too strong for him. "I don't have to win. If I can stall for the five minutes I can win a point of the guild," he said to himself. Still, a thought lingered, what better way to satisfy his hunger for knowledge than by seeing it and interacting with up close? "Andras Naphriel, I've heard about you. Golden Gryphon's elite S-class and its strongest mage. Will you please allow me to study your magic up close?"

"You will regret saying those words," the dark angel said. If he wanted to see his magic so bad he would oblige.

A loud buzz sound buzzed throughout the arena, and the timer immediately began its countdown.

Hugo clapped his hands together and then slammed them against the hard floor. "Wrathful Embrace of the Stone Emperor!" The floor of the arena trembled. Then six large streams of stone and earth exploded and quickly formed into long arms with fists as hard as iron.

"Oh? That boy possesses one of the Four Emperor Magic? Impressive. Now I can see why my former master has faith in them," Grau said. However, none of his young mages seemed at all impressed by the enemy's magic as he was.

As the stone and earth fists came at him Andras raised an eyebrow. _One of the Four Emperor Magic? Was not expecting a rare magic like that in a guild of misfits._ He placed his hand on the hilt of his sword before the fists fell on him. The area around him was torn to pieces by the power of the fists, they left deep and wide craters in their wake.

Hugo did not have a lot of battlefield experience but he knew that attack did not hit Andras. That wasn't the point of it. He showed Andras he could attack at range.

"However, I am more than capable of shortening the distance," Andras said.

Hugo turned to his left to see Andras was right next to him, just a few inches of space between them. _Impossible. He's too fast._

Andras unsheathed his sword, already his darkness channeled through the blade. "Lightless…"

Hugo's eyes grew wide. _An obsidian blade?_

"... Slash." Andras swung his sword and released the magic in a crescent shaped slash against Hugo's side.

At such close range Hugo knew he couldn't do anything. The attack struck him like a train. The force behind it sent him flying against the wall of the arena. The impact smashed the wall open, shattering it. The young Sin laid against the wall, his head hanging, chin resting against his chest, a long, deep wound going across it. He was unconscious.

The rest of the Sins looked horrified as their friend had been beaten with a single strike. Sora covered her mouth and tried to hold back tears. Nama was completely awake, the shock had scared his sleepiness away. Elaine held Salem's hand, she could feel the anger swelling inside of him.

Exuro didn't say or show anything. But in his mind he was trying to process the speed at which Andras had moved. They were in serious trouble.

"Damn it." Zane growled, he looked at the timer. There were still four and a half minutes left.

Andras sheathed his sword back into its sheath. "A magic like yours is wasted in such a weak mage. You and your guild of misfits have no right to be in the same contest as Golden Gryphon." He turned back and walked away.

"Ladies and gentlemen, with over four minutes left Andras has won an overwhelming victory! Golden Gryphon has won all five points!"

With a single swing of his blade Andras had redemonstrated everyone the overwhelming power of Golden Gryphon. How could the Sins…how could the others guilds win against a guild that had won two matches without breaking a sweat?

Zane punched a wall, his flames surrounded his body, his teeth grinding hard. "That angel bastard, I'll make sure to beat his ass!"

* * *

Hello to my fans. I hope you found the chapter enjoyable. However, I hope you forgive me for not making it longer. As I was writing this I realized that writing every single battle, of every single contest would take too long, and could end up being too boring. So, I'll only be writing the most important moments. Make sure to keep score.


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